Crisis Core
by CrAzY-SiLLy-Me
Summary: AUOOC SasuSaku Cross-over with Crisis Core. 'She's waiting...' he reminded himself. "He won't stay down" one man said. Sasuke wanted to see her again, he wanted to see her smile, hear her voice. He has to go back to her, to tell her that he loves her.
1. Embrace your Dreams

A/N: My friend got me so addicted to Final Fantasy Crisis Core – or rather, hooked onto Zack and Aerith pairing

_A/N: My friend got me so addicted to Final Fantasy Crisis Core – or rather, hooked onto the Zack and Aerith pairing. Heh. So, we decided to make our own version, except we'll be using the cast of Naruto instead. Besides, it's also a gift fic, her birthday's on June 8. I'll be focusing on this first, but I will update the other fics from time to time. I'm just watching some movies which I think would serve inspiration for my fics. For those who have yet to finish or start playing, be warned of the spoilers this story will have. For those who have played and/or finished the game, __**we changed a few scenes, added some lines, and edited the script a bit**__ and such. This is a __**Crisis Core inspired story**__ by the way. So it's __**not exactly a replica or a remake**__, but just a fandom story._

_Summary: AU Cross-over of Crisis Core and Naruto. "You're my living legacy…" he said, dying and bleeding. "If you see Sakura," he gave a small smile. "Say hi for me…" and Naruto couldn't help but feel guilty that his friend will die because of him. His friend, Sasuke, won't see Sakura ever again, and it was his fault. _

_Characters: By the end of the story, the cast shall be explained. XD_

_Zack – Sasuke  
Aerith – Sakura  
Angeal – Itachi  
Genesis – Gaara  
Sephiroth – Madara  
Lazard – Kakashi  
Kunsel – Shikamaru  
Cissnei – Tenten  
Tseng – Neji  
Rude – Shino  
Reno – Kiba  
Cloud – Naruto  
Tifa – Hinata  
Yuffie – Moegi  
Hollander – Fugaku  
Hojo – Orochimaru

* * *

_

**Crisis Core (Revised)**_**  
Chapter 1: Embrace you Dreams**__  
Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor…_

"_Don't fear the darkness..." _he thought.

"_Wutai troops have hijacked Shinra express MK 93 II. The train is currently headed to Midgar Sector 8. A SOLDIER operative will be inserted to neutralize the situation. We are to proceed as scheduled. Commence mission in 3… 2… 1… mark! Begin mission! Operative is ready for insertion."_

He breathed in and out, calming himself down…

"_Face it." _

…before opening his eyes and getting up from his seat; he walked towards the door of the copter, his head lowering to take a good look down below, where the train he will be infiltrating continued running.

"Sasuke," he looked back to see his superior. "The train has been overrun by Wutai troops. Eliminate them and regain control of the train."

His once blank face turned to a goofy grin as he raised his left index and middle finger together to form a salute.

"Oh yeah."

"Get serious!"

And he jumps out of the copter, landing perfectly on top of the moving train. Sasuke looks up to see his superior jump down after him.

"Sasuke, focus! There are no Shinra troops on this train, understood?"

"Whatever you say," he smirked. "Aniki."

He then turns around and punches one fist to his open palm. He starts running off towards the engine train, but ends up almost getting shot, causing him to nearly fall off the train as he tried to regain his balance. "Hn, hello to you too." He gets back up and rushes towards the Wutai soldiers dressed in Shinra army uniforms.

"Come and get it!"

Sasuke takes his sword out and slashes at the soldiers, jumping and dodging every counter thrown back at him. He sees an opening and jumps high enough to reach the train engine.

"SOLDIER second class Sasuke, on the job!"

Sasuke cuts loose the cart and slashes his sword down as a sign of mission accomplished. He enters the engine room, stopping it at sector 8 station. His ears pick up the sound of the radio from the transmitter.

"_Train MK93 II re-routed to Sector 1 station near Mako reactor 1. Proceed to mission phase 2 and change surveillance rank…_"

After making it in sector 8, he jumps off, feeling accomplished. "That wasn't so hard." He heard his phone ring, so he took it out to answer the caller.

"Sasuke here." He says.

"Making progress?"

"Itachi, what the heck is going on? Why are we fighting Shinra troops?"

"They're not Shinra, but Wutai in disguise." He sighed. "Head to the open area above."

"…You mean towards sector 8?"

"Aa, but first, you must clear a path." He cut Sasuke off from asking. "You'll get what I mean."

Sasuke turned when he saw a bunch of Shinra disguised Wutai troops, all aiming their guns at him and firing. "So I can cut lose, right?" he asked with a wicked smirk.

"Whatever, be discrete about it."

Sasuke hangs up afterwards and draws his sword out once again, turning to look at the Wutai soldiers who pretended to be Shinra. With a click of his tongue, he got into a fighting stance. "Showtime." He said to himself, licking his lips in excitement before running to attack. He raised his weapon and brought it down to one soldier, then another, successfully eliminating every enemy he sees.

"What now..?" he took his phone out again when it rung. "Aniki." He answers.

"Not too bad."

"Heh. Piece of cake, I'll make it to first in no time."

"Riiight…" Itachi murmured. "Now, go upstairs at the end of the platform, shouldn't be too hard for you now."

"Tch. Duh."

"Give me a good answer and show a little respect, will you?"

"You got it." He hangs up once again and heads over to sector 8, seeing many people run pass him. Furrowing his brows at this, he decides to check the situation and is faced by none other than Behemoth, a monster. "This mission just keeps getting better and better." With a few slashes and quick moves, he manages to defeat the monster, giving out a loud "hell yeah" afterwards.

Unfortunately, his celebration was short lived when he found himself in a tight situation – someone had caught him off guard, and said someone is pointing a sword directly at the back of his head.

"To have your back to the enemy is a sign of confidence or foolishness."

Sasuke turned his head slightly, before his whole body followed, eyes widening at who was standing before him: None other than Madara.

"How-?"

With quick and simple slashes, Madara gave Sasuke a hard time in defending himself.

"You're not the only hero." He hissed.

"It's over…" Madara said, hitting him hard, causing Sasuke's sword to break in half.

"That's impossible!" Itachi growled. Sasuke was in trouble, and Madara looked like he was just about ready to deliver the finishing blow. But before that could happen, Itachi quickly took a hold of Sasuke's broken sword to block the attack, preventing Madara from killing him just yet. Due to this, Madara takes a few steps backward while Sasuke takes this as his cue to get back on his feet.

"Phew, thanks Itachi…"

"Tch." Itachi takes his phone, chooses the "Abort Mission" choice and selects "yes". Sasuke's eyes widens at this. "Training is over Sasuke."

"What?! How come?!"

Itachi quirked a brow at his way and pointed the broken sword at him.

"For real?! I was just about to get serious!" he counters, removing his VR headgear.

"Hn. This was just a Virtual Reality mission, and you failed." He handed back the broken weapon. "Sasuke," said boy looked up at him. "Embrace your dreams, remember that." It was the younger boy's turn to raise a brow. "If you want to be a hero, you need to have dreams, as well as honor." And he takes his leave, not glancing back at his subordinate who stood still, reflecting on what Itachi just said.

"_Embrace my dreams, huh?"_

With his hands pocketed, his shoulders a little slumped and face contorted to one of annoyance, he decides to settle in the lounge area of level 49, where he can do some squats to relieve himself from the stress he was feeling. _"That was embarrassing…" _he thought, recalling how he was easily defeated by a VR Madara.

"Hey, Sasuke…"

He turned his head slightly, not stopping from his squats.

"You seem a little on the edge."

Nara Shikamaru – a friend of Sasuke's, also a second class SOLDIER.

"Can you blame me? All this training – and no… no assignments! It's like they're hanging me out to dry!" he huffed, trying to calm down. "You must be pretty busy lately, with everyone else off-base."

"Off-base..?" Shikamaru repeated. "Wait, you mean, you haven't heard? There's been a mass desertion at SOLDIER."

He nearly fell off-balance at that. "Mass… desertion?!"

Shikamaru shook his head slightly and explained the situation. Somehow, every SOLDIER has gone missing, and it was a bit weird for Sasuke to not know this, especially if he was directly under Itachi, himself.

"One of the 1sts has deserted, taking a bunch of seconds and thirds with him. Nobody knows why he left or what he's up to."

"…"

Shikamaru continued when Sasuke didn't speak. "The mass desertion is the reason why your training is on-hold." He looked up when someone entered the lounge, causing him to straighten himself up. "Head's up, a first." He informed.

Sasuke turned to see Itachi.

"New assignment." he said, eyeing Sasuke.

"Hn. I finally get some real action, huh?"

"Yeah, this will be your show." Sasuke turned serious at this. "Report to director Kakashi, we'll give you the details there…"

With a nod, they both head to the briefing room of level 49 in silence. The second class SOLDIER wanted to ask his superior about the mass desertion, but decided to remain silent for a moment, trying to recall what Shino had said. _"It's… weird." _He thought, snapping back when they reached the door to the briefing room. "Show respect, got it?"

"Yeah, yeah…"

They enter and Kakashi looks at them then at Sasuke, smiled and got up. "Sasuke, I presume?"

"Hai."

"Good to finally meet you." He offered a hand to shake, and Sasuke took it. "Well then, on to business." He gestured the two to take a seat as he did as well, his once friendly face turning to one of seriousness. Sasuke looked up when the screen in front of Kakashi showed a picture of a red haired SOLDIER with green eyes. Written on the screen were the words: SOLDIER 1st class Gaara; Current Status: MIA.

"_He must be the guy Shikamaru was talking about…"_

"A month ago," Kakashi began. "He went missing during a mission in Wutai. Do you know anything about this?"

"…_or maybe not." _He turned back to Kakashi. "Not a clue."

"I see," he replied. "Well, the mission is currently stuck in Limbo. That's why we decided to send you."

"Me..? To Wutai..?"

"Yes. The war has gone long enough."

Itachi cleared his throat, gaining Sasuke's attention. "And I've recommended you to 1st class."

"…1st… class…" for a moment, Itachi couldn't decipher the glint in Sasuke's eyes, until he jumped and tackled Itachi to a hug. "Oh man! Aniki! I love you for that!!"

"Ugh. Sasuke, don't make me regret this."

"…Sir." Sasuke recomposed himself as Kakashi blinked and eyed them. "Aniki..?" he echoed, eyeing Itachi.

"He sees me as his older brother."

"Oh, but you're not related, right?"

"No. Thank God…" Itachi mused.

"Hey!" Sasuke snapped. "Are you insulting me?"

"No." Itachi said in a sarcastic tone. "Anyway, once you pack, you leave at once."

"Got it."

Sasuke then runs off to Shikamaru who just entered the room. "I just heard that Shinra is offering missions through Save Points." He informed, eyeing Sasuke who just took out his mobile phone to read his emails. "Are you listening? Stop reading the emails you get from guys!"

"What the?! Shikamaru, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm perfectly straight?!"

"…Could've fooled me. You don't show any interest in girls."

"Haven't found the one, nor do I have time for relationships."

After a few more minutes of talking, Sasuke left to pack his things. _"Man. Aniki really did recommend me as a 1st class, huh? I can't disappoint him."_ He finished packing and went back to the briefing room to have a last chat with the two.

"Are you ready?" Itachi asked.

"Yeah."

"I'll be joining you as well," Kakashi said. "Oh, and Sasuke?"

"..?"

"What's your dream? To become a 1st, is it..?"

A small smirk made its way to Sasuke's lips. "No." he answered. "It's to become a hero."

"A hero, huh?" Kakashi shrugged. "That's good, unattainable dreams are the best kind."

"Um… thanks..?"

He eyed the place, checking if the coast was clear before turning to Sasuke. "Alright brat, listen up. We need to follow the path that leads to Wutai's Tamblin fortress, we have to hurry. B unit is standing by." With a nod, the two headed towards their destination, stopping when Wutai soldiers suddenly came in sight.

"You two! Identify yourselves!"

When Itachi made a move to attack, Sasuke took a step forward and drew out his sword. "Leave it to me."

Itachi quirked a brow and folded his arms behind his head. "Knock yourself out."

"Heh." With a smirk, Sasuke started attacking the troops, bringing them all down with a few simple swish and slash. "Alright, next!"

"Calm down pup." Itachi said, placing a hand on top of the boy's head. "Teens these days…" he murmured.

"No can do aniki, I need to make a good impression."

"What for..?"

"The director is watching, right?"

"Pfft. Show off."

He started walking, and Sasuke quickly followed. "Do you know about Dumb Apples, kid?"

"How many nicknames do you have for me anyway? And what the heck is a Dumb Apple..?"

"A lot." He answered the first question, before continuing. "Unbelievable," Itachi murmured. "How can you not know about Dumb Apples? You'll never make 1st at that rate."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Wait! What?! What the heck is a Dumb Apple?! Hey, aniki!" he runs after his superior who was making his way towards the Tamblin fortress, Sasuke managing to catch up. "What are Dumb Apples? What's the deal with them?" he asked, a little more calmly.

"The official name is White Banora," he began explaining. "The trees bare fruit at random times during the year, because of that, the townspeople affectionately call them Dumb Apples. A local farm has plenty of them to spare."

"Oh really?" Sasuke raised a skeptical brow. "So, you stole them..?"

"We were poor then, Sasuke."

He snorted. "Nice excuse Itachi, really."

"Sarcasm may lead to your permanent position in second class."

"Is that a threat?!"

Itachi ignored that statement. "But even then," he stopped, looked up at the sky and closed his eyes for a bit. "I had my honor."

"…Are you… being dramatic on me..?"

"The largest Banora White tree grew on a wealthy man's estate. It was rumored that those apples tasted the best. But I never stole from that tree, because the wealthy man's son was my friend."

Sasuke sighed. Looks like Itachi was purposely ignoring his remarks. "Hey, wait." He said. "If he was your friend, you should've just asked for some."

"Honor and pride can be quite a burden at times."

"…What exactly does this have anything to do with me?"

"…No story is not worth hearing." He smirks and starts walking away, all the while laughing as Sasuke blinked and realized that he had just been stooped. He jogged after Itachi with a glare.

"That's it? Yeah, well, thanks a lot!"

No sooner did they arrive at the Wutai Fortress' entrance.

"B unit will set up an explosion. That will be our cue."

"Hn, so the diversion will allow us to infiltrate."

"Correct." Itachi readied himself. "I'll be setting up the bomb inside the fortress, while you charge the front gate, and…"

"Uh-huh, and..?" Sasuke asked. "And, and, and, and..?!"

"…Indulge yourself."

"Heh." He smirked. "That's what I do best." He stared at the front gate, his smirk turning to a scowl as he got up and paced. "Ugh… come on B unit… hurry up…" beside him, Itachi stared with an amused expression. _"Tsk, he can be too reckless at times." _He closed his eyes and took his Buster sword, saying a little prayer to it.

Sasuke turned to eye him. "I haven't exactly seen you use that, don't you think it's such a waste?"

"Use brings about wear… tear… and rust. And _that's_ a real waste."

"You're serious aren't you?"

"Yeah, I can be pretty cheap."

"No kidding."

They turned their attention to the explosion that had just occurred, and the excitement and determination in Sasuke's eyes earlier came back, his lips forming the usual anticipating smirk. "Begin the mission." Itachi ordered.

Sasuke jumps, twisting his body before making a perfect landing. He then storms to the front entrance to be greeted by a bunch of Wutai soldiers. He quickens his pace and reflexes, managing to expertly avoid the attacks his enemies sent as he effortlessly eliminated them. He fights his way towards the center, made his way to the rear and finally arrives at the courtyard, then at the entrance of a dojo, where a female Wutai soldier was waiting.

"Hm..?" he raised a brow.

"One: avoid unnecessary training, two: protect Wutai at all costs, three: ugly Shinra SOLDIER dudes…" Sasuke looked up "…must be punished!" and found a little girl standing on the top of the stairs that led to the temple dojo.

"Who… are you?"

"I'm Wutai's greatest warrior, Moegi! If you wanna go further, you have to go through me!"

"…A kid..? You shouldn't be playing here, it dangerous! Go home to your parents."

Moegi jumped and landed behind Sasuke. "You're the one who's going home! If you insist on going any further, you'll have a fight on your hands!"

Sasuke sighed. _"Oh man, what am I supposed to do here?"_

"Whap-Pow-Bam! Take that, bad guy!"

He stared at her with a weird look, standing there as the kid was still in a fighting stance. Those punches… weren't even hitting him!

"………Arrgh! No! You got me!" he fell to his knees, all the way down to the ground as Moegi jumped in victory. "There! That'll teach you to mess with me! Once again, I've brought peace to Wutai!" she then runs off, believing that she was successful in taking Sasuke down.

"…You gotta admire that energy." He gave a small smirk. "Well, back to work, I guess."

He enters the dojo, hoping to find something, but all he finds are two huge Wutai monsters.

"You must be the anti-SOLDIER monsters I've been hearing about."

Quickly drawing his sword out, he fought the monsters, slicing and dicing, dodging and evading, until he was successful in defeating them. "Phew. I hate monsters." He blinks and looks at his mobile phone, answering the caller.

"SOLDIER second class Sasuke, victorious once again."

"Good, now get out of there quickly. There's only five minutes left until detonation."

"Understood." He hangs up, all the while glancing around the place. "Director Kakashi, are you watching?" he shakes his head for a bit and rushes off, laughing a bit. "Heh. Gotta move!" he runs off, looking up and quickly rolling to the side when another monster jumped from above. He glares at it. "No time to play!" he attempts to draw his sword but ends up dodging when the monster used its weapon to attack. Sasuke continued rolling away, doing a few back flips before drawing out his sword. He jumps and delivers one powerful slash, causing the monster to drop on the ground. Twirling his sword a bit, a habit he does after every fight, he approaches to monster for inspection, and was caught off-guard when it awoke and swished its huge arm at him, causing his head to hit a wooden post, which weakened him and impaired his vision temporarily.

"Ah shit. Not good…"

Down for the count, Sasuke looks up, bracing himself for the attack but instead, gave a surprised look when the creature suddenly fell.

"That's one more you owe me." He smirked and turned his head slightly to Sasuke who tried to clear his vision. "You lost your focus..."

"Uh… yeah?" he looked at Itachi then at the Buster sword. "Oh, sorry if your sword got any wear, tear or rust on it."

"You're a little more important than my sword." He turned to him and smirked, raising his thumb and index finger as a gesture about how big a deal or small Sasuke's life was. "But just a little." He moved and offered a hand to his "little brother". Sasuke blinked before giving a small smile, which Itachi returned with one of his rare ones.

"Hn. Thanks." and Sasuke took Itachi's offered hand.

* * *

They both head out of Fort Tamblin to meet up with the camp, but they were greeted by Kakashi on the way.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm not used to being on site."

Sasuke blinked. _"And yet you're the director…"_

"You didn't have to come." Itachi assured, nudging Sasuke lightly on the side.

"This operation will bring an end to the war. I have to see it through personally." He turned to the younger boy. "SOLDIER 2nd Class Sasuke,"

"Sir!" Sasuke said, standing at attention.

"You performed your duties admirably at Fort Tamblin. I saw it with my own eyes. Frankly, my evaluation of you is---you supported Itachi well by diverting the enemy. An acceptable level of work for a Second. Be ready for your next assignment."

"Sasuke, do you know the difference between 1st and 2nd Class?" When the teen just blinked, Itachi continued. "A SOLDIER 1st class performs above and beyond the call of duty at all times. Remember that." He paused for a bit. "Now, let's hurry. Madara is waiting."

"…Madara? The SOLDIER hero? Wow I get to meet a hero!" As soon as he said that when Itachi walked away, enemies attacked, and he killed them.

"Sasuke, let's go." Itachi called. The second class runs over to the two, stopping when he saw them standing still. A rustling of leaves from behind caused all three of them to turn, seeing two more enemies approaching. "Take the director to a safe place." Itachi says.

"Then contact Madara." Kakashi said.

"Sasuke is more than enough." He assured. "Now, go." The second class SOLDIER led Kakashi away from the danger, and left him with two Shinra soldiers who spotted them.

"Thank goodness you're safe Director."

"I should be fine now, Sasuke, go and assist Itachi." The director said with a small smile, aware that the lad was worried for his "aniki".

"I know, I know!" He rushes back to where they last left Itachi, spotting him nowhere. "Aniki!" he called out, then looked at the soldiers his mentor defeated. "What? These guys aren't Wutai troops." he glances up and sees a red materia floating. "Oh shit…" he cursed as his surrounding changed into a fiery department. "A summon?!" he exclaims, seeing the beast, Ifrit, right before him. "Who the hell called it out?!" without getting an answer, he draws his sword out and fights the being.

Having a bit of a difficulty, he closed his eyes and concentrated, remembering his aniki's lessons.

"_Prove your honor to me…"_

He smirked and opened his eyes. "You got it." And he rushed to Ifrit, punching nonstop, until he delivered a finishing blow, adding one more slash of his sword to do the job. "Che. That was easy." He returns his sword and turns, but glances back to see Ifrit get up, ready to attack once more until a swift swing of a blade eliminates it. Sasuke looks at the new arrival, only to see Madara.

"Whoa…" he mouthed.

Madara looks at the "Wutai" soldiers on the ground, taking one of the two's helmets off. "Gaara." He murmurs. Sasuke looks shocked. "The missing first class..?"

"Gaara copies," Madara clarifies, after taking off the other helmet, also revealing another Gaara. "Not the real one."

"Copies..?"

"Where's Itachi?"

"He was supposed to be fighting here but-"

"So he went with him as well…"

Sasuke stopped and turned to Madara. "Just now… what do you mean..?"

Madara looks at him. "Itachi…" he starts. "Has betrayed us, _that_'s what I mean."

His eyes widened at what the "hero" said. The words "Itachi" and "betrayed us" didn't seem to fit in one sentence. "What're you talking about..?" he murmurs, turning to glare at Madara. "That's a lie! He would never betray us! I know him! He wouldn't do this!" he clenches his fists tightly. "Itachi… Aniki… he would never betray me…"

And yet somehow, why did he sound so unconvincing, even to himself?

_Embrace your dreams and protect your honor as SOLDIER…_

_**To be continued…

* * *

**_

_Next on Crisis Core (Revises): Chapter 2: An Angel's Dream_

"Welcome partner…" Gaara greeted with open arms. Itachi only pointed Sasuke's sword at Gaara. "Huh…" Gaara placed his arms down. "I see, you've finally made your decision. I'll respect your wishes old friend, however…" he approached and stopped beside Itachi. "Can you really live on that side?"

Itachi made a move to follow, but Sasuke tried to stop him, but only got pushed back. "Itachi!" he called. The older SOLDIER only stabbed the ground with Sasuke's sword, made one eye contact with the younger SOLDIER and turned to leave. Sasuke, not wanting to lose his brother figure again, took his sword and ran after him. Upon stepping out, he was greeted by two monsters.


	2. An Angel's Dream

**Crisis Core (Revised)**_**  
Chapter 2: An Angel's Dream**__  
Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor…_

His eyes stared at the ground beneath him, half-closed yet brows narrowed. _"Man, what is with Itachi? How long is he gonna slack off like this? It's been a month now…" _he shut his eyes tight, his hands forming a fist as he clenched them. _"Madara's got it all wrong too! Lumping Itachi together with Gaara…"_ he sighed. _"Gaara is a deserter who took a bunch of 2nds and 3rds with him! He used the copies to attack us! Itachi would never condone something like that! He valued his SOLDIER honor more than anyone else! Ugh! Everything's so messed up these days! Itachi! Just come back, please!"_

Sasuke sighed frustratingly and got up, about to go do some squats when his phone started to ring. Checking the caller ID, he wondered who it was, since only an unknown number appeared on the screen. "May as well answer it…" he said to himself.

"Hello?"

"…SOLDIER second class Sasuke."

"That would be me. Who is this?"

"Director Kakashi wants to see you. Go to the briefing room."

"Hey, wait!" he got hung up. "Who was that..?" he trailed off, eyeing his phone for a while before shrugging and making his way towards the briefing room.

"Director." He greeted. "Any word on Itachi?"

A shake of the head answered him. "He hasn't contacted his family either..."

Sasuke sighed and turned back to Kakashi. "So what's this about?"

"A new assignment," Kakashi said. "I want you to go to the hometown of our missing SOLDIER first class, Gaara." he paused. "According to the parents, they've had no contact with Gaara whatsoever, but they can't be trusted."

"Why?"

"They're his family."

"Hmm… Mm-hmm…" Sasuke walked around a bit, scratching the back of his head.

"I had already dispatched some staff, but we've lost contact. I want you to go and investigate." He turned to the person who just entered. "He will go with you."

Sasuke eyed the man who approached him.

"Neji of the Turks."

"This job is looking really gloomy…"

Neji chose to ignore that. "Let me know when you're ready to go."

"I already am…" Sasuke said, turning away. _"Damn it, I just want to know what happened to aniki…"_

Neji sighed a bit and shook his head. "Pleasure to be working with you…"

"It's just an investigation right? Should be easy…"

"I doubt it," Neji murmured. "Madara was supposed to be the one to do this."

"And why not him?"

"He refused it."

"Tch. They spoil him too much."

Neji gave an amused smirk. "Why don't you say that to his face?"

"Ah… no thanks."

* * *

The helicopter dropped them off at Banora village, where Sasuke started gazing at the trees that seemed strange to his eyes.

"Weird…" he murmured.

"They're White Banora trees, otherwise known as Dumb Apples."

"…Banora? That means…" he trailed off for a bit before turning to Neji. "We're in Itachi's hometown..?"

"Yes. Gaara and Itachi are childhood friends, it seems."

"Huh…" the two turned their attention when Gaara clones ambushed them. "Tch. These guys are the same from before." He drew out his sword and rushed on to attack and eliminates the enemy, not even breaking a sweat.

Neji approached the fallen clones. "Looks like they're here too," his eyes narrowed as he stared far off at where the village was located. "The safety of the villagers concerns me; it's possible that these clones took them as hostages. With weapons of mass destruction, we'll get rid of Genesis and his accomplices. It's what the President plans to do, so it would be best if we were to move quickly."

"Hn, leave it to me."

Sasuke started to jog, following the trail that would lead to the village, but was stopped by Gaara clones and a spider-like robot that fired a missile at him. He raised his sword and sliced it in half, smirking as he looked at his enemies.

"Tch. Thunder should be enough to weaken this thing, the clones aren't that hard to deal with anyway." He prepared himself for battle before running towards his opponents, casting a thunder attack at the robot a couple of times before swinging down his blade at the two clones. The robot tackled him from behind, so he quickly rolled over to avoid any other fatal attack. "Damn." He cursed, closing his eyes to focus before opening them again.

"Chain Slash." he shifted his sword for a proper grip. "Here we go." He rushed and attacked, slashing continuously at the robot until it finally stopped moving and turned to heaps on the ground, static surrounding the destroyed parts. "Gaara copies, huh?" he eyed the clones he defeated earlier.

"Where did you here that?"

Sasuke turned to Neji to see him walking towards him. "Madara said it."

"Hm." Neji looked at the machine. "The technology was stolen from our scientists."

"Huh?!"

"It apparently allows Gaara's abilities and traits to be transplanted... to SOLDIER members and monsters."

"SOLDIER and monsters… we're the same..?"

"Anyway, come on." He followed Neji towards a house. "This is Gaara's home. His parents were wealthy landowners."

Sasuke recalled what Itachi had said to him.

"_But I never stole from that tree, because the wealthy man's son was my friend."_

"They weren't mere acquaintances." Neji added. "They grew up together, and were best friends."

"In other words," Sasuke eyed Neji. "Gaara deserts and gets his best friend, Itachi, to join him, is that it?"

"Madara believes that's the case." He inspected some rocks under a tree. "A gravestone, still very new." He turned back to Sasuke. "Sasuke, go find Itachi's house, I'll check the grave." He went to kneel before the rocks for inspection. Sasuke eyed Neji. "Ugh. So Turks always do this stuff?"

"Someone has to do it."

"Must be rough…"

"Don't worry," he smirked. "We're paid much better than you are."

"No way!"

With a nod from the Turk, Sasuke sighed and sprinted towards the village, stopping upon reaching the place. "Hmm…" he inspected each and every house, not finding any clue from the outside which one was Itachi's home. "Looks like I'll have to knock on every door." He murmured, approaching one house. No one seemed to be around too, and if ever he would attempt to open an unlocked door, a monster would come out, and if he would approach another house, clones would attack.

"Geez. This has got to be it." He said, already sick and tired as he walked towards the house, leaving behind the pile of destroyed robots, defeated monsters and passed out clones. "Hello?" he called, knocking. When no one answered, he opened the door, seeing an elderly woman seated on a chair in the dining area.

"Can I help you?"

"Uh… um… greetings, ma'am." He paused then continued. "Are you… Itachi's mother?" she didn't respond for a while, so Sasuke continued. "My name's Sasuke…" he introduced himself, hoping the woman would respond. She didn't for a moment, then turned to face him. "Are you Sasuke, the puppy?"

"…" he twitched a bit. _"That Itachi…" _he mused. "Excuse me?"

She laughed lightly. "My son wrote to me once about you. Zero attention span, restless as a little puppy." And she continued to laugh. He frowned for a moment, but couldn't help but find Itachi's mother's laugh quite warm and comforting. "Huh… thanks Itachi…" he said in a sarcastic voice, crossing his arms and giving out a sigh.

"You're not… here together with Gaara, are you?"

"No, I'm not. Don't worry."

"What is happening with my son?"

"I'm not really sure."

"Gaara came back here, a month ago, with some comrades. And they proceeded to take the lives of many townspeople."

He was shocked to hear that.

"Gaara… he used to be such a good boy."

"Is Itachi..?" he asked, but couldn't finish.

"He came here, but he left his sword and went off somewhere."

Sasuke turned to the Buster sword that was leaning against the wall. He approached it, and indeed, it was Itachi's sword.

"That sword represents our family's honor." The woman explained.

"I see… no wonder." He smiled a bit. "He never uses this sword, really… ever." Sasuke walked towards her and knelt down on one knee beside her, giving a reassuring smile. "I'll take care of Itachi. You should go and hide somewhere."

She eyed him for a moment and shook her head. "Don't be concerned. Gaara cannot harm me."

"Hm…" he got up and eyed the Buster sword before taking his leave. "Please…" he stopped himself from exiting when Itachi's mother spoke. "Be a good friend to my son."

He gave a nod, then proceeded to leave. _"Itachi, where did you go..?" _he stepped out and heard a noise from the side. "What..?" he turned and spotted clones once again. "Tch." He charged and eliminated them. Afterwards, his phone rang, so he took it out, answering Neji's call.

"There's a factory on the outskirts of town, I saw a copy go inside."

"You think that's their HQ?"

"Most likely," he sighed. "I'm currently on a cliff overlooking the factory. A frontal attack is inadvisable. We'll go in from above. Come to the cliff top immediately."

"Got it."

He checked the area, looked back at where Itachi's mom was before heading towards the cliff, where he was met by another group of monsters and machines. Sighing, he rushed head on, not wasting much time in killing them before proceeding to the cliff, where Neji glanced behind him while still crouching, spotting wrecked machines and fallen monsters behind Sasuke as he approached.

"Hm. Made new friends?" Neji asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, but they were bad company." Sasuke answered, getting the sarcasm, which reminded him of Itachi once more. _"Heh. Hadn't had much sarcastic conversations since he disappeared." _He approached Neji and crouched down as well.

"Gaara's parents were in that grave."

"Wait, he… his own family?!"

"We can't expect reason from him." Neji continued, then turned back to Sasuke. "What about Itachi?"

"He wasn't home…" he turned back to Neji. "But please, give me time. If I find him, I can talk to him." He didn't stop. "If I can convince Itachi, maybe Gaara will come back too."

Neji smirked and faced Sasuke. "I understand now why Madara chose you."

"Huh?"

"Gaara and Itachi… those two were Madara's only friends." He paused. "He didn't want to fight them. That's why he refused the mission."

"Well, Itachi's my friend too, he's like a brother to me."

"He's counting on you to bring them both back."

Sasuke sighed.

"Time is short." Neji said. "Let's go."

With a nod, Sasuke broke in by jumping from the cliff and breaking through the window. "Infiltration successful." He announced, quickly looking to his left when clones came running. Neji jumped in after and turned to Sasuke. "Go on ahead, I'll take care of things here." He finished instantly as soon as Neji ran ahead. He looked around, checking to see if there were any enemies left.

"Sasuke, this way." He looked over the railing and spotted Neji. "Watch out for enemies on the way." He warned. With a nod, he took off, and Sasuke followed shortly. They reached the lower floor and Neji approached the computer to try and get some information regarding the clones. Meanwhile, Sasuke decides to check the door nearby and head upstairs, wherein a voice he has never heard of before spoke.

"Infinite in mystery is the gift of the goddess. We seek it thus and take to the sky. Ripples form on the water's surface. The wandering soul knows no rest."

Sasuke eyes the seated figure, finding none other than Gaara, who gave a smirk and pocketed the book. "Settle down…" he spoke, staring at him, the amused smirk still on his lips. "Sasuke the puppy."

He twitched, and Neji came in soon, spotting a nearby tank thing. He peeked inside the clear glass and saw a clone. "The graves at the house…" he mused, and turned to Gaara. "We found the remains of our people there as well."

"It didn't take much to have them send false reports," Gaara said. "Just some mild threats…"

"They would have done that anyway," Sasuke argued. "At least your parents would have."

"My parents betrayed me…" Gaara said. "They had always betrayed me from the very beginning." He glared at them. "What do you know..?" he made a move to cast a fire attack. "Shinra lapdogs!" and directed the attack at Neji who was taken aback by it. Sasuke readies himself for battle, but was shocked instead when Itachi appeared in front of him and took Sasuke's sword.

"Welcome partner…" Gaara greeted with open arms. Itachi only pointed Sasuke's sword at Gaara. "Huh…" Gaara placed his arms down. "I see, you've finally made your decision. I'll respect your wishes old friend, however…" he approached and stopped beside Itachi. "Can you really live on that side?"

Itachi made a move to follow, but Sasuke tried to stop him, but only got pushed back. "Itachi!" he called. The older SOLDIER only stabbed the ground with Sasuke's sword, made one eye contact with the younger SOLDIER and turned to leave. Sasuke, not wanting to lose his brother figure again, took his sword and ran after him. Upon stepping out, he was greeted by two monsters.

"Damn it." He made a move to attack, but Neji beat him to it by shooting them down. "There's no time, we have to leave now."

"We're not gonna look for those two?"

"All evidence of misconduct must be erased. Company rules..." He said. "An air strike will neutralize this town." They turned as two more monsters appeared. "Are you sure that nobody is at Itachi's house?"

"…"

"Hurry." Neji said, understanding what Sasuke meant even without saying anything as he covered him.

* * *

Sasuke was getting close to the village when Neji called, informing him that Gaara and his men had begun bombarding the town.

"Are you serious?!"

"Yes. You can stop the bombs by slicing them, should be easy for you."

"You got it." He hung up and turned around, taking out his sword as he readied himself. He listened to the buzzing sound of the bomb, and with proper timing, managed to get rid of it, as well as the other upcoming ones. He took his phone out once more and answered the caller.

"I managed to buy us some time, hurry and get whoever is in Itachi's house out. You have until then."

"Alright." Sasuke rushed back to Itachi's place and entered the front door, only to be greeted by the old woman he met earlier lying on the floor, dead.

He didn't know how to react to that, he just stared, wide eyed, at the dead woman, who seemed so innocent and had nothing to do with this. He didn't know how to react at all – whether to be angry, or to cry, he had no idea. And he only met her a while ago…

"…Why..?" he said, barely above a whisper, turning to see Itachi standing a few feet away from him, holding onto his buster sword. With his fists clenched, he grabbed Itachi by the collar and slammed him against the wall. "What the hell did you do Itachi?!" he pulled him and slammed him again, against the door, and followed it up with a punch, which caused Itachi to stumble outside his house. "Is that…" Sasuke drew in a breath. "Is that your idea of honor?!" he was too angry and too pained to see the elder woman dead, worse is, his brother figure, the woman's son, was responsible for her death.

Itachi shook his head a bit and sat up. "My mother…" he spoke, his voice sounding a bit hoarse. "Could not continue to live. And neither can the son."

"What're you talking about?! What's going on here?!"

"I told you…" Sasuke turned to see Gaara. "You can't live on that side anymore."

The second class SOLDIER turned to his mentor to see him strap his sword behind him and walk away. "Itachi!" he chased after him, but Gaara tripped him with his foot, causing the teen to stumble on the ground. "Ugh… Itachi!" he called out again, watching him walk away.

"My friend, do you fly away now? To a world that abhors you and I?"

"Shut up!" Sasuke yelled at Gaara, but the red haired merely continued.

"All that awaits you is a somber morrow."

"Shut up! I'm warning you!"

"No matter where the winds may blow." Gaara continued, smirking sadistically at the 'puppy'. "I don't see Madara today but…" he eyed Sasuke. "Are you game?" and the materia he was holding in his hand glowed bright, a summon circle appearing before him as Sasuke got back up to his feet. He soon found himself surrounded by flying rocks that circled the broken piece of land he stood on. A roaring sound caught his attention, and he turned to see Bahamut flying and stopping to face him.

"A summon..? So that's how it is…" he gave a solemn look before turning it to a determined gaze as he drew out his sword. Bahamut made one swish, hitting Sasuke as he cried out and glared at the beast. "Damn you…" he cursed, recalling his last training session wherein Madara, even if it was just a data, almost killed him in the VR training. He closed his eyes as mako energy started to surround him, Madara's commanding voice sounding in the air.

"_Concentrate."_

Sasuke opened his eyes and positioned his sword to a stabbing poise. "I'm feeling it!" and he performed the Octaslash. Bahamut was enraged by the attack, so it delivered a few blows at Sasuke, who tried to dodge and block. Feeling a bit annoyed at how this monster was stubborn, he sent a few fire attacks and ice attacks.

Bahamut was still standing, and he sent some lightning attacks at Sasuke, who rolled away to dodge it. "Damn it." He cursed. "I have to get Itachi back…" once more, he closed his eyes and concentrated.

"_Prove your honor to me." _

His aniki would always say that, and he would always prove it. "You got it." He said and delivered a Rush Assault at Bahamut. The winged creature was still strong enough to fight, and he got pissed off at the stubbornness. He closed his eyes once more as he concentrated on the time he has left to fight. _"Neji, I need your help again…" _his phone rang, and he answered.

"Is this the end?"

He twitched. "I'm trying, I'm trying!" he heard a helicopter coming in, and he looked up to see Neji in it as an Air Strike was delivered to Bahamut. Seeing an opportunity to defeat the monster, Sasuke rushed as soon as the smoke of the explosion has cleared and gave one final swing of his blade at the summon. "Oh yeah." He said with a smirk. Approaching the fallen red materia and picked it up. His surroundings turned back to Banora village, and as he gripped the materia in his hand tightly, he turned to glare at Gaara.

"Summons aren't meant to be used like this!" he scolded. "What ever happened to dreams and honor?!"

"We are…" Gaara answered. "Monsters." He placed a hand on his head, closed his eyes and swung his hand to the side, exact timing as a black wing sprout out from his back left side. Sasuke was taken aback by the one-winged being before him as black celestial feathers floated around. Gaara turned his head slightly to Sasuke and smirked a bit. "We have neither dreams nor honor." With that said, he took off, Sasuke following with his eyes until he could no longer see Gaara, black feathers still flying around.

He caught one feather in his hand. "SOLDIER…" he spoke softly and looked back up. "Doesn't mean monster."

* * *

Bombs were dropped as the village houses were destroyed, the banora white trees turning to ruins as Sasuke watched the scene unfold from a cliff. He eyed the copter that came by to pick him up. As soon as the door opened, he turned around to witness the burning village and what was left of it, Neji standing by the entrance of the helicopter and eyeing Sasuke.

The raven-haired SOLDIER couldn't bare to look any longer, that he closed his eyes and turned away. _"Aniki…"

* * *

_

"_Aniki… the war is over… everyone's really happy." _He stared at the empty training room of the SOLDIER floor where he and Itachi used to spend the rest of the time in developing their skills, or more specifically, Sasuke's skills. _"As for me…" _he closed his eyes, an image of the Buster sword appearing in his head when he remembered the words of Itachi's mother.

_That sword represents our family's honor…_

His fists clenched as he recalled how Itachi held that sword as if it was his life, and how he prayed to it when they infiltrated the fortress of Wutai at Fort Tamblin. An image of how Itachi had saved him once again from the third monster that almost killed him, and how he said…

_You're a little more important than my sword… but just a little._

He opened his eyes slowly and his clenched fists relaxed a bit. "Where… did you go?"

His thoughts were interrupted when his phone rung, so he had no choice but to answer it.

"Sasuke here…" he greeted.

"It's been a while, Sasuke."

"…Madara."

"Come to Kakashi's room." He ordered.

"Alright…" he hung up and took one last look at the training room before heading to the director's office.

Along the way, he bumped into Shikamaru. "Hey Sasuke."

"Oh, hey." He said, though a little less enthusiastic.

"So, the war's over. Have you heard it on the news?"

"No, but, I did pretty good…" he said, shrugging in a careless manner.

"…They didn't mention you at all."

"…"

"It was all about Madara's bravery and such."

"…What the hell?! He was with B unit!"

"That's how it is. Media chooses the hero." He smirked in a teasing manner as Sasuke sighed irritably. First, Madara forced the last mission on him, and he had to witness Banora's demise, plus fail to bring his mentor back. Next, Madara gets all the credit. Hell, not even a mention of Neji was present. Boy, he sure hated reality, especially since it bites.

"…Asshole." He murmured, heading towards the elevator as Shikamaru only chuckled.

* * *

As soon as he got to Kakashi's office, he gave a small glance at Madara who turned to him and smirked before looking over at the clipboard he held. Sasuke only glared and continued making his way to Kakashi who soon faced him. "Congratulations," Sasuke only crossed his arms and shifted his weight on one foot uncaringly. "As of this moment," the director continued with a smile. "You're promoted to SOLDIER first class."

The director expected the "puppy" to cheer and jump, or at least smile or make a happy noise. But he didn't expect him to just stare back, lower his arms and stand there, like a professional. Next thing Sasuke did was look down at his hands, wondering why they weren't clenched from excitement. "Huh…" his eyes half-closed. "I thought I'd be happier…" he whispered. Kakashi seemed down at the reaction, that his smile was replaced with a slightly solemn look. He shifted a bit.

"Understandable," he said, before leaning his chin on his left hand. "Too much happened too fast…" but he knew better. If Itachi was there to hear and witness Sasuke's accomplishment, the teen would've been yelling his head off. But apparently, the absence of the first class SOLDIER meant a lot to Sasuke. As if he did everything to become a first for his "aniki" and not for himself. _"Well, his dream was to be a hero, not to be a first…"_

"Sasuke, I'm afraid I need your assistance again."

The newly promoted 1st class turned his head to Madara with a calm glare. "Are you pushing another assignment on me?"

Madara sighed, arms still crossed as he lifted his head to meet Sasuke's gaze. "My apologies…"

"Tch, whatever…" apparently, he lost a great deal of respect for the… hero…

"I'll inform you on your next assignment, but before that, go to the briefing room and change into a 1st class uniform." Sasuke nodded and did as he was told, reaching the briefing room in an instant and getting changed into the all black 1st class uniform. He eyed himself for a moment, still not as happy as he thought he would be. A researcher entered, and he turned when he was called.

"You're now able to perform materia fusion." He said.

"Huh." He replied, recalling what Itachi said about materia fusion. It simply combines two materia to form a new one or a more powerful one. "If you need to know anything else about it, just ask." The researcher said. Sasuke nodded, but made a move to leave, stopping only when his phone beeped; informing him that he has a new mail.

He read the contents of the message, annoyed that they declared Itachi and Gaara's statuses as KIA – Killed in Action. He answered his phone when the director called, asking if he was done. Sasuke said he was, and was then told to head back to the office for a briefing of his next mission.

* * *

"The company has decided that Gaara and Itachi are to be assassinated."

"And you want me to do it?!" Sasuke was not happy at that news. Kakashi eyed him for a moment. "No, the army will do that."

"And me?"

"They… don't trust you to do it."

Madara decided to speak. "They believe that your emotions will hamper your judgment."

"Well, of course!"

"That's why I'm going too."

Sasuke turned to glare at him. "To kill them?"

Before Madara could answer back, the alarms began to alert them, and Kakashi got up from his seat. "Intruders..." Kakashi announced.

"Where?"

"Close." Kakashi answered. "Madara, the President. Sasuke, entrance."

"Yeah. You got it." He rushed off and took the elevator to reach the entrance. When he got there, he was surprised to see multiple infantrymen having a hard time in dealing with the machines. "Wait a minute… these machines all belong to Shinra!" he saw Gaara clones, and he remembered what Neji said about stolen technology. "Tch. That Gaara…" he took his sword out and jumped from the second floor, bringing his sword down to one machine that almost killed an infantryman. "Clear the area and tend to the wounded, I'll handle this." He ordered.

Being a first class, he had the right to give commands, especially since no one around was higher than he was.

"Yes sir." The infantryman said, passing on the order to the rest of his comrades who helped out the other wounded men. "Gotta love this job…" he murmured, rushing head on to defeat the machines. He successfully clears the entrance, and proceeds to fight. "What the hell?!" the sight that greeted him was some Shinra troops trying to hold the enemies back. He did not think twice in attacking the machines, and again, told the lower class members of Shinra to help clear the place by getting the others to safety.

"Roger." Said the man before leaving to fulfill his duties.

* * *

Later on, Madara joins Sasuke at the entrance.

"The intruders are Gaara clones." Sasuke told him.

"Seems like the work of Fugaku."

"…Who?"

"A Shinra scientist who vanished after lifting the copy technology."

"Are you saying that Gaara and this… Fugaku guy, are working together?"

"Perhaps…"

"What is it they're after?" Sasuke withdrew his sword and sighed. He just got promoted to first class, he wasn't as enthusiastic as he thought he would be, and now this happens. Madara eyed him and explained further. "Fugaku lost his position as head of the science division. And because of that, he grew a grudge against Shinra. He's most likely planning revenge."

"Pfft. Sounds stupid." Sasuke walked around a bit, hands on his waist as he turned to the ruined robots then back at Madara. "So Gaara is supporting this idiotic cause?"

"I would prefer not to believe it but..."

That was the first time he actually saw Madara look a bit… sad?

"…Then don't." Sasuke concluded, turning away. Madara gave an amused expression before sighing and shaking his said. "I won't then." He turned back to Sasuke. "There're more clones in Sector 8, so let's get going."

They reach outside and spotted the whole area of Sector 8 in complete chaos. "We'll split up from here."

"Hn." And they took their separate ways. Sasuke spotted a girl who was cornered by two clones, so he made a move to help, but was stopped by a guy who had this lazy look in his eyes, holding onto a metal rod. "Sector 8 is Turk's jurisdiction, slick." he informed. Sasuke turned to eye him, then at the other guy who looked a bit, obese.

"This is no time to be playing around," he said, turning to see Neji approach. "Hey Neji, do something!"

"There's no need for concern." The guy wearing shades said.

"Huh?" Sasuke looked back to see the girl holding onto a giant shuriken-shaped weapon, and the clones already on the ground unmoving. Neji turned to the other two who Sasuke just met. "How are the other areas?"

"Midgar's crawling with nasties." Said the man with the red triangles on his cheeks.

"SOLDIER is having difficulties." Said the other guy, eyeing Sasuke.

"Hm. Kiba, Shino."

"Just say the word." Kiba said.

"Go." Neji ordered.

"Yes sir." Shino answered and the two left, heading towards the upper area of Sector 8.

"So now we're outsourcing to the Turks?" Sasuke asked, watching where Kiba and Shino ran off to. "SOLDIER's being stingy." He turned to the girl he was about to help earlier when she spoke.

"There's a manpower shortage." Sasuke said. "You're a Turk too, huh?"

"Yeah, I'm Tenten." She greeted.

"Hn. Sasuke."

Neji chose to interrupt. "Aren't you on a mission?"

"Same damn thing, need help?" Sasuke offered.

"I appreciate the offer, but-"

"Oh, how generous." Tenten cut Neji off. "Well Neji, Sasuke, I gotta go." And she left after winking.

* * *

Sasuke then starts to clear the other areas until he found himself in LOVELESS Avenue. He saw a couple of civilians in danger that he rushed to help, easily getting rid of the clones and of the machines. Two girls he helped thanked him, but one of them informed him of another girl who was having trouble in fighting against a man with a big gun. Sasuke nods and heads to where the girl pointed at.

He spots Tenten avoiding some bullets and was ready to throw her weapon when another shot caused her to drop it. Sasuke takes his sword out and blocks an attack meant to kill Tenten. "Gaara?!" he was surprised to see him, but when Gaara did not speak, he assumed it to be a clone. "This one's… different…" he mused. It sure looked a lot like the real one.

With a few hits here and there, the clone falls, yet attempts to fly away with its last ounce of strength. Sasuke stares at it for a moment before drawing his sword out once again and jumps to deliver a final blow, stopping it from escaping.

"Wings…" Tenten said, approaching the fallen clone. "When I was a kid, I always wanted to have wings. You know, like an angel."

"If people had wings…" Sasuke spoke. "…they'd be monsters."

"Wings symbolize freedom for those who have none, they don't symbolize monsters." She dropped the subject and turned to Sasuke. "Thanks for the save, as expected of a SOLDIER 1st class." She gave him a Research Department QMC if ever he needs to purchase something, he can use it.

"We're not that different." Sasuke said, a hint of indifference in his voice. Seeing Gaara, even if it was a clone, only added irate to his mood. "Anyway, thanks again." She looks around. "Don't you have a job to do in another location?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, see you again." And she runs off.

Sasuke eyes the clone once more, and was interrupted when his mobile rung.

"What?"

Madara concluded that Sasuke, the pup, was in another sour mood.

"Once sector 8 is clear, come to Mako Reactor 5."

"Did you find something out?"

"Itachi… has been sighted."

"Tch. So it's search and destroy?"

"The army is mobilizing, but there's still time. You and I will find them before they do and-"

"AND WHAT?!" Sasuke yelled, causing Madara to pull his phone away from his ear to avoid being deaf. He smirked and continued to speak. "…Fail to eliminate him."

"For real?!"

That was a quick change of mood. "Heh. Yes. For real."

"Alright!" they both hang up and Sasuke instantly sprints to where Madara was. _"Aniki, hang on, I'll get you back, no matter what!"_

On the way though, he encounters a creature and quickly eliminates it. Something was off about it, so he inspects the fallen monster and was shocked to see Itachi's face on it. "What the hell?! Is that Itachi's face?!"

"It appears Gaara isn't the only one who can be copied."

Madara comes in and stops a few feet behind Sasuke.

"No shit."

Madara shook his head at the colorful language this little pup had. "The company training room…"

"Hm..?" Sasuke, once again, noted the tone and look Madara had.

"We used to sneak in there for fun, when the 2nds were out…" he mused. "Gaara, Itachi and I…"

"You guys were… pretty tight, huh?"

"Hmm." He smirked slightly and looked to the side. "I wonder…"

* * *

"_Infinite in mystery is the gift of the goddess. We seek it thus, and take it to the sky. Ripples form on the water's surface. The wandering soul knows no rest."_

_Madara smirked and turned to face Gaara. "Loveless Act I."_

"_Hm. You remembered…" Gaara said._

"_How can I not," Madara tapped his head with his index finger. "When you've beaten it into my head?" he took his sword out and prepared for combat. _

_Gaara raised his sword and eyes the crimson colored blade. Itachi took another sword out and left his Buster strapped on his back before turning to Gaara. "Don't take Madara lightly." He warned. _

"_Hmph. Noted."_

_They both rush towards Madara who blocked their attacks without breaking too much of a sweat. When Itachi rushed in and had his sword and Madara's locked, the latter smirked haughtily. "Ha. Is that the best you can do?" he pushed Itachi away and swished his blade down, standing there with the smug smirk still present on his lips. Itachi gave an amused smirk as well. "All hail Madara, eh?"_

"_Itachi," Gaara said. "Stay back." He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again. "I'll take Madara alone."_

"_Gaara…"_

"_The world needs a new hero." He proclaimed, tracing his red blade with his hand as it gleamed brighter than before. _

_Again, Madara refused to drop the smugness. "Hmph. Come and try."_

"_So smug," Gaara said. "But for how long?" and he attacked Madara. Their blades clashed in a deadly manner that one mistake may lead to a fatal injury, or maybe death. But this was Madara and Gaara, they were both good, only the former was better, yet Gaara plans on changing that fact as he added a few elemental materia on his blade, turning his weapon into one of Firaga blade. Everytime he would strike, Madara should block, unless he wants to be scorched by flames._

_One attack from Gaara made Madara push him back higher, and he jumped after the red-head where they continued their sword dance in midair. Gaara was thrown back down, but while he was still in air, he cast two Firaga assaults at Madara who only dodged and blocked. However, Gaara was able to control the flames and had them come back down at Madara who managed to deflect a few but still got caught by many. _

_Seeing an opportunity, Gaara smirked and attempted to cast another magic attack when Itachi jumped to intervene, stopping him from doing more damage._

"_You'll destroy us all." He told Gaara._

_Gaara shoved his hand off and placed it on his face, the fire materia still active. "That's no way to talk to a hero!" he yelled, finishing his attack which caused Itachi to grunt in pain and fall back down. Gaara looked back up and saw Madara dispel the fireball and send three waves of his blade down which Gaara had to block unless he wanted to be sliced into three._

_They both landed back on the nose of a cannon, Gaara safely on one side while Madara landed on one part that was about to sink thanks to his early attack. When he was no longer in Gaara's line of vision, he did another attack and caught Gaara off-guard. They both engaged themselves in another sword dance, neither one backing away from the challenge of the other's blade._

_At one point, Madara gained the upper hand, but Gaara refused to be beaten and used magic once again. They were both about to deliver finishing blows to each other when Itachi rushed in between to stop them. "Enough!" he yelled, one hand held onto a sword which blocked Gaara's while he used the hilt of the Buster sword to block Madara's._

"_Itachi…" Madara voiced out._

_Gaara, clearly pissed, still continued with a magic attack. "Out of my way!" he used the attack to break Itachi's sub sword in half, causing the upper end of the blade to fly towards Gaara and give him a gash on the left shoulder. He cried out and fell to his knees, grasping onto his wound as Itachi made a move to help._

"_Gaara!"_

_Due to the damage done to a comrade, the VR training automatically shut down, returning them back to reality. _

"_Just a scrape." Gaara said, getting up. "I'll be fine, don't worry." And he picked up his sword before leaving. "Even if the morrow is barren of promises, nothing shall forestall my return."

* * *

_

"So, was everything alright?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes, as far as Gaara was concerned. But…" he paused. "As for Itachi…"

Sasuke turned his head over his shoulder to get a glimpse of Madara's back. "Aniki? What happened?"

"Hm. Later, I received one of his famous lectures."

"About what?"

"Always the same." He said with an amused smirk. "Discipline, dreams, honor, etcetera."

"Ah, one of those, huh?"

Madara pulled away from the railing and walked back to the monster Sasuke defeated earlier. He eyed it and had another solemn look in his eyes. "So it's true, they're in league with Fugaku."

Sasuke didn't take his hand off from the railing but just stared at it. "How could this happen?" and he placed the other hand at the railing and leaned down a bit, sighing and trying to calm down, yet his emotions keep on heightening up to a notch. This would be an advantage if ever he needs some limit breaks in his battles. _"Itachi, what are you up to..?"_ he thought before pulling away and following Madara. _"I guess I'll have to look for clues."_ He made his way to a few ladders, finding a valve when he reached the lowest area possible. He rotated the wheel, opening the Mako Reactor room where Madara stood, waiting.

The newly promoted 1st class headed to where Madara was.

"Looks like the power has been restored," Madara said. "Let's go."

When they entered, Madara grabbed a folder and read the contents. "Sasuke, go check the other files." He nodded and read the documents that were scattered in different places. "Ugh… this is giving me a headache." He muttered, seeing the tiny words printed in one paper and all seeming to force themselves to fit. "It was Fugaku's experiment." Madara clarified. "The result was a normal child, which meant he failed, however…" he continued reading the rest in silence, so Sasuke read the other documents.

"Geez. My head feels heavy…" well, he can't help it, he had to force the words to enter his brain in one sitting. "It was before Gaara deserted." Once again, Madara tried to simplify everything. Itachi sure was right in calling this kid a puppy. "The wound was superficial, but for some reason, Gaara wasn't healing, the man who treated him was Fugaku…"

* * *

_Madara and Itachi pushed themselves away from the wall when Fugaku came out of the infirmary room._

"_Professor," Itachi called. "How is Gaara?"_

"_The problem is the Mako energy that seeped in through the wound."_

"_Is it treatable?" Itachi asked._

"_First, he'll need a transfusion."_

_Madara took a step forward but Itachi prevented him. Fugaku turned to Madara. "You aren't viable." And so Fugaku led the way back inside the infirmary, Itachi tailing behind, leaving Madara to wonder why it had to be Itachi and not him?

* * *

_

"Why couldn't I be the donor?" he asked. Sasuke didn't know what to say, and Madara continued. "A soldier… type G…"

Sasuke made a move to go back upstairs when Madara told him that he ought to read what he was reading first. He came back down and approached him, but not before he saw what was inside the tank that Madara had been inspecting earlier. He peeked inside and saw a monster, the same one he fought earlier wherein Itachi's face was on. _"This is where they make the copies..?" _he shook his head and turned to Madara.

"Project G gave birth to the man we know as Gaara."

"Project G…" Sasuke echoed.

"Project Gaara." Madara clarified. "Contrary to this report, Gaara showed clear signs of change."

"Degrading?"

"Not only that."

"Copies..?"

"Abominations." Madara answered. They both turned to the stairway where Fugaku came, surprised to see them.

"M-Madara..?!"

"Fugaku," he greeted. "I thought I'd find you here."

"The degradation process… only I can stop it."

Madara was about to approach Fugaku, but stopped when Gaara came flying down from above. "Gaara…" Madara acknowledged. Gaara smirked and pointed his sword at Madara. "You won't take Fugaku." The professor gave a victorious smirk and made a move to leave. "Sasuke, go after Fugaku."

"Aa." And he chased the professor, leaving the two former friends behind.

Gaara lowered his blade and walked closer to Madara. "There is no hate, only joy. For you are beloved by the goddess. Hero of the dawn, healer of the wounds…" Madara smirked nostalgically. "LOVELESS again? You never change."

"Three friends go into battle. One is captured, one flies away. The one that is left, becomes a hero."

"A common story." Madara said with a shake of his head.

"If we were to enact it, would I be the one to play the hero, or would you?"

"It's all yours." Madara said without a care.

"Indeed," Gaara said. "After all, your glory should have been mine."

"How petty…"

"In hindsight perhaps," he turned to face Madara. "Now what I want most if the "gift of the goddess"."

* * *

Sasuke saw Fugaku enter the room a few meters away from the one they came from. "Tch. He won't get away, not until he tells me where Itachi is." And he ran after the professor. He managed to catch up with the professor, and his rage did not waver, even for a moment. "Fugaku, do you understand what you're doing?!" he was getting closer to him, close enough to probably strangle the professor that caused all this, but a familiar sword had blocked his path, earning Fugaku a chance to escape.

"Working for Fugaku now..?" he traced the sword with his eyes, staring at the post where Itachi hid. "What is it you're after?"

"World domination…"

"That's not even funny man."

"How about… revenge?"

"For what?!" his eyes, for the first time, was glaring at his mentor, his idol, his _brother_. "Itachi!"

The older first class didn't even bother to say anything for a moment. Sasuke's angry eyes turned to one of surprise when Itachi suddenly had one angel wing sprout out from his back, on the right side, a small one below it.

"Whoa…" Sasuke said, watching the feathers fly around gently and smoothly. "I've become…" Itachi spoke. "…a monster." He turned around a bit and faced Sasuke. "A monster's objective is usually world domination or revenge."

"You're wrong." Sasuke walked forward. "Those aren't the wings of a monster."

"Well then, what are they?"

Sasuke outstretched his hand to catch one soft feather left floating in the air. "Angel's wings."

"I see." Itachi said, looking away for a moment. "Then what should an angel fight for, Sasuke? What do angels dream of?!" he yelled, going out of character even for a moment, but Sasuke wasn't even phased, even for a bit. Itachi tossed his Buster sword and caught it again by the handle before stabbing it on the ground, afterwards, approached Sasuke, who took a few steps back.

"Aniki…"

"Angels dream of one thing…"

"Please," Sasuke said, still stepping back when Itachi continued approaching. "Tell me."

The older man stopped - eyes solemn for a moment before answering. "To become human." And without warning, he had punched Sasuke on the stomach, the force was too strong that the younger of the two had flown all the way to the other side, rolling on the floor for a moment before coming to a complete halt. He was taken aback by what Itachi had done. Not once did his aniki ever hurt him like that, in fact, he even prevented him from getting hurt. Now he really felt like a puppy, a defenseless one at that, seeing his mentor having to turn to the other side, against his side. He slowly got up, holding onto his stomach as he tried to recover.

"_Aniki…" _he lifted his hands for defense, but as soon as he saw Itachi, as soon as he saw who he was about to fight, his fighting spirit dampened, his eyes looked defeated and he lowered his arms, refusing to fight. He raised his head and sighed. His aniki didn't even notice that he was now a 1st class. If this was the result of it all, he wished he was never promoted.

"Defend yourself!" Itachi ordered.

Sasuke stared at him for a moment, afterwards, gave a cheeky grin and shook his head. _"Even if you're now Shinra's enemy and target, you're still…" _Itachi got pissed that he punched the ground and sent a fire materia towards Sasuke, who wasn't too shocked that Itachi would seriously attack him again. _"You're still…" _the ground he stood on gave way, and he fell down inside, passing out from the speed he was falling. _"…you're still my aniki."_

_Angels dream of one thing… to become human…_

_**To be continued…

* * *

**_

_Next on Crisis Core (Revised): Chapter 3: SOLDIER Trademark_

"So you saved me, huh?"

"Not really." She exclaimed, turning around once more to lean on a flower. "'Hell-looo!', that's all I did." He couldn't help but laugh, which caught her attention. Somehow, his laughter made her smile even more. He braced himself up and pushed all of his weight and force to his feet, managing to get up from his lying position. She giggled at what he did, finding it amazing to say the least.

"Thank you so much, Sakura." he said, turning his head to face her and give a small smile. "I'm Sasuke." He introduced himself and crossed his arms. "I have to repay you somehow…" he mused, walking around a bit. "Don't worry about it." Sakura said, but Sasuke shook his head. "No, no…" he stopped and snapped his fingers, turning to face Sakura. "Hey, how about one date?"


	3. SOLDIER Trademark

Crisis Core (Revised)

_A/N: Okay, so… it's like this. You see, Zack's attitude sort of reminded me of Sasuke when he was just a kid back in the academy days. Sasuke only turned into who he is when we first saw him due to what Itachi had done. In this case, it works the same. The Sasuke you all know may come out once we get to the part of his battle with Itachi. _

_ANYWAY! Character changes!_

_Reno is now Kiba  
Rude is now Shino  
Kunsel is now Shikamaru  
Lazard is now Kakashi_

_I'll be replacing the previous chapters soon for these changes. My friend has agreed after I told her the multiple messaging your readers gave me about the characters._

**

* * *

Crisis Core (Revised)**_**  
Chapter 3: SOLDIER Trademark**  
Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor…_

"Tell me what happened."

"Mom..?" he paused, the feathers floating around in the dark seemingly comforting him. "I… I want to help out a friend. But, I don't know how I can do it…"

"Hell-llooo!"

"Mom..?" the feathers were slowly disappearing. "Hell-llooo!" and he finally opened his eyes, and was met by a girl… a pink-haired girl. She brightened up when she realized he was awake. "Hooray!" she exclaimed. He turned his head to her, eyes half-closed and looking a bit drunk. "…Heaven?" he asked, unsure if he was alive or dead. She smiled, finding him amusing. "Not quite." She answered as he slowly sat up. "Church in the slums." She explained, hands folded behind her back.

His vision finally cleared, and he could observe the girl standing before him. She was smiling, and her smile didn't look flirtatious or anything, unlike some of the girls he met or talked to in the Shinra building everytime he needed to ask them about the location of either Madara or Itachi. His eyes lingered on her for a moment, captivated by how she smiled charmingly and innocently that he couldn't help but say the next words that came to his head.

"An angel..?" he asked with a small grin.

She shook her head, the smile still on her lips. "No, I'm Sakura." She turned around and pointed up. "You fell from the sky." She turned again to face him, smile not faltering. "Scared me."

"So you saved me, huh?"

"Not really." She exclaimed, turning around once more to lean on a flower. "'Hell-looo!', that's all I did." He couldn't help but laugh, which caught her attention. Somehow, his laughter made her smile even more. He braced himself up and pushed all of his weight and force to his feet, managing to get up from his lying position. She giggled at what he did, finding it amazing to say the least.

"Thank you so much, Sakura." he said, turning his head to face her and give a small smile. "I'm Sasuke." He introduced himself and crossed his arms. "I have to repay you somehow…" he mused, walking around a bit. "Don't worry about it." Sakura said, but Sasuke shook his head. "No, no…" he stopped and snapped his fingers, turning to face Sakura. "Ah-hah! Hey, how about one date?"

"What is that? Don't be silly." She said, turning away from him to face the flower patch. He sighed, a bit surprised that the first girl he even attempted to ask out just refused. Reject seemed like a… depressing word. He turned to the side and made a move to walk around.

"Stop!" he did, blinking when he saw Sakura's brows narrowed at him, but her face looked like she was pouting. "Don't step on the flowers!"

"…Excuse me?"

"Normally, people are more careful with flowers." She scolded.

"Well, I guess I'm not normal." He teased, grinning a bit. "Huh?" he bent down a bit. "You don't see a lot of flowers in Midgar. They're like luxury items around here."

She smiled and looked at the flowers. "They only grow here." She walked around a bit. "Although, I planted some outside my house too."

"If I were you, I'd sell them. Midgar's full of flowers, your wallet's full of money."

"Midgar full of flowers… wallet full of money…" she pondered on it. "Never thought of it, that way…"

He turns to see her bend down to be closer to the flowers. He couldn't help but stare at her for a moment, wondering what it was about her that captured his attention so much. And to think, he once told Shino that he doesn't have time for girls. "Hm?" he blinked when she turned to face him. "Is something wrong?" she asked, eyes suddenly filled with concern. "Um…" he tried to think of something to cover up his embarrassment. "…uh… exit?" he finished lamely, cursing himself.

"Oh, that door over there." She pointed at the entrance of the church. "Going already..?" she asked. He looked reluctant to leave when her tone was a bit sad, but he had things to do. "Yeah, I should get going. Alright, thanks again Sakura." She tried to smile. "Yeah…" And he walked towards the door. By the time he was a few feet away, he stopped and turned back to Sakura who was still tending to the flowers. "So, are you always here?"

"Yeah." She got up and eyed him. "Hey, so where are you going?"

"Hmm, I'm not really sure…"

She walked to where he was. "I'll take you there, okay?"

"…Where?"

"Hmm, I'm not really sure…"

Sasuke gave a sheepish grin. "You just want to spend more time with me, right?"

She blinked, then smiled a bit and gave a nod. "Yeah."

"Whoa! Are you- did you-?!" he scratched the back of his head, unable to believe that she took him seriously. Never the less, he still nodded and they both went outside. Sasuke took a look around, finding that he was in the slums area. "This must be under the plate. Sector 5… this is the slums."

"Yeah, if you walk a little, you'll be in the central slums. There's lots of people, and you can go above the plate from there, too. So I'll walk you there."

"If I can get out onto the streets, I guess I can figure things out from there. Okay, lead the way." He follows her, all the while glancing around at his surroundings. It wasn't everyday a 1st class SOLDIER is able to walk around this part of the town. His head abruptly turned to Sakura when she stopped and yelled. "Monsters!" she announced. "Sasuke, let's run!"

He raised a brow at the two porcupine-like monsters that looked like they were bred with a mix of hedgehogs. "These guys aren't that much to be feared you know." He stated, taking a step forward and drawing out his sword. "Sasuke..?" he turned his head slightly to her and gave a smirk. "Don't worry, I'll protect you." And he turned to confront the two creatures. It only took him a couple of swings to get rid of them, and he glanced at Sakura to see her face looking so amazed at what he did. He felt smug, knowing that he impressed her; though why he cared about it, he wasn't sure.

"Wow. I feel so safe with you around." She beamed.

"Heh. Those things weren't so tough." He twirled his sword, a habit of his, before strapping it to his back. "Hey," he turned and crossed his arms, giving another goofy grin. "Did I look cool?"

"…Hmm. Beats me."

"…Huh? Sakura, in times like these, you should-"

"Come on Sasuke, let's go." She walked ahead as he eyed her. "Uh… hello?." He ran after her. Somehow, she was kind of like Itachi, only in a cuter way.

"So, the central slums are this way?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"Hmm…"

"What is it?" she turned to face him, curious as to what he could be thinking.

"I guess the slums are built just like any other city."

She giggled. "Of course. Many people have lived here for a long time. Inside the gate, there's a marketplace. It's fun because there are so many stores. You can go above the plate from there too." They head over to the huge gate; along the way, Sasuke stops and looks around. "It's kind of stuffy down here…"

"Really? It's always like this, though."

Sasuke turned then suddenly punched his fist onto his other palm. "I know what it is." He looked up. "You can't see the sky."

"Who wants to see the sky? I don't, that's for sure."

"Wouldn't you normally miss seeing the sky if you lived under a plate all year round?"

"I guess I'm not normal…"

Sasuke walked over to her, wondering why she feared the sky so much. "You… want to talk about it?"

"The sky… frightens me. I feel like it's sucking me in…" she looked down. "Weird, huh?"

"Normal is… overrated." He said, scratching the back of his head.

"Think so..?"

"…I have an idea!" he exclaimed. "One day, I'll take you to see a beautiful sky, a real sky."

She looked at him for a moment, but lowered her head. "I don't normally fear it, but I'm often scared at the night sky… it's too dark…"

"Sakura," he called and she looked up, seeing him give a small smile. "It's not frightening at all. I know you're gonna love it."

The way he smiled so reassuringly made her feel comforted that she couldn't help but return the grin and nod. Afterwards, they head towards the giant gate and entered the marketplace. Sasuke eyed the area, observing the surroundings. "Hmm… Looks like an interesting place."

"Maybe I should take a look around?"

Sasuke was about to reply when someone cried. "Whoa! Watch out!" he turned a bit too late and ended up being bumped by a kid. He scratched the back of his head and looked at the boy. "Oh, sorry." He apologized. The boy frowned at him. "Be more careful!" and he ran off.

Sakura seemed worried. "Hey, Sasuke? You didn't just… lose something, did you? Like any of your belongings?"

"Did I lose something?" he repeated, and checked his stuff. "I don't think so… huh?! My wallet!"

"It's gone?"

"Was it that kid? I'm gonna hunt him down!"

"Sasuke, wait. I'm sorry but… I know that boy."

"You do?"

"There has to be some reason. He would usually never do something like this."

"Whatever the reason, stealing is wrong. I'm gonna find him and…" he trailed off, seeing Sakura's face. "Let's ask him why he did it." She offered. "I'll bring him here." And she walked away. "Hey, Sakura!" he wasn't able to run after her. "She's gone… I'll have to look for that kid too." He turned to the people walking around. "I guess I can ask for help."

He walked around and spotted an area which led outside the slums. "Did he go out this way..?" he saw a guy enter the marketplace from there and called his attention. "Hey, did you see a kid come running this way?"

"A kid? Can't say that I have. This path leads above the plate. Children would never come this way."

"Damn."

"Looking for someone?"

"Yeah."

"And you lost him."

"Yeah."

"Was your wallet stolen or something?"

Sasuke blinked. "How did you know?"

"If you want to catch someone here, you'll need some assistance. Can't find anyone alone in this place, you should ask people on the streets for help."

He sighed and turned to the people walking around. He spotted a little girl and asked if she's seen the boy he was looking for. "Yeah, I know that kid!" she said. "You look pretty desperate. I'll go find him for you."

"…Seriously?"

"You can wait here." She offered and ran off.

"Alright, thanks." So he waited. But he was never the patient one, which resulted to Itachi calling him a pup, always restless. "Ugh. I'm tired of waiting. How far did she go?" he turned to check the area and spotted the said girl talking to the boy he was looking for, until he ran. "H-hey!" he called. "That's the kid who took…"

The girl turned to him and stomped her feet repeatedly. "Aw, darn… you should've kept quiet!" she ran to him. "You were so close to catching him."

Sasuke twitched and bent forward. "Weren't you trying to help him get away?"

"That's so mean… are you saying you don't trust me?"

"Ngh…" he sighed. "It's alright, I'll try looking elsewhere…"

"Sasuke!" he turned to see Sakura run towards him.

"Hey. Did you find him?"

"Not yet, but we'll find him soon, I promise!"

And again, she left while walked around the area, spotting an infantryman from Shinra on patrol. He raised a brow at this, wondering why someone would be circling this area. "Hn." He approached the man, unable to see the expression of his eyes due to the helmet he was wearing.

"Ah! You're-" he stopped before continuing as Sasuke blinked. "Oh, nothing sir. I'm a Shinra Infantryman on patrol."

And just like that, he walked away.

Sasuke eyed the man for a moment. Why would he say he was an Infantryman when it was obvious, especially for a SOLDIER like him who works for Shinra. "Hmm… weird." Shrugging it off, he approached a woman who was tending to a store.

"Hey, could I ask you something? I'm looking for a kid who stole my wallet. Seen any suspicious looking kids..? He's about this tall…"

Said kid zoomed pass behind Sasuke.

"I haven't seen… no, wait, I have." The woman said.

"Really?"

"He ran that way." She pointed.

"_That way huh?" _so he ran over there. "Thanks – huh? He's over that way!" he exclaimed, seeing the kid run away from the direction he was heading. So he tried to chase the kid, but he was gone. Cursing, he turned to the woman. "What's the big idea?"

"Hehe. I didn't mean to trick you or anything. I just really have bad eyesight…"

"_And I wonder how you'll cope once you're older..?" _Sasuke sighed. "It's alright, I'll try looking elsewhere…" he glanced the area, hoping to find someone he could possibly trust to really help him. This is the slums after all. The place where most of its inhabitants despise Shinra. _"I wonder if Sakura is still looking..? Can she really catch that kid by herself?"_

He circled the area and decided to ask a man just tending to his store. "Um, hey, you got a minute?"

"Oh, welcome! Looking for a gift for your girlfriend?"

"Uh…" he sweat dropped. He didn't have any right now, Being a SOLDIER was time consuming. Having a girlfriend would just complicate things. "No, I'm not here to shop…" he answered.

"Oh, you're not a customer…"

"I can't exactly be a customer without my wallet. A kid stole it. Mind helping me catch him?"

"Yeah, I guess I can keep an eyes out." The man said, turning back to his store as Sasuke nodded his thanks and continued looking around. _"Tch. Where did he go?"_ he turned back to the man he was talking to earlier and saw the kid stop upon seeing him.

"There he is!" he exclaimed, making a run for it. "hey, you!" he called the man. "That's the kid! Get him for me!"

"Who, whoa… a slippery little one, he is."

Sasuke almost fell down. These people were against him. "What're you doing?!" he skidded to a halt. "Tch. He's gone."

"Sorry about that," the man said, shrugging and going back to tending his store. "I'm not a very fast runner."

Sasuke was running out of patience. "Yeah right! You didn't even try to chase him at all!"

"Well, I wouldn't say I wasn't trying…"

He held a frustrated cry and breathed in and out. Whatever he does, this guy is still older than him, and he has to respect his elders. "It's fine." He then left to search elsewhere.

"Alright… I'll come check again, maybe."

Sasuke was glad to hear that voice. "Sakura!" he called, the pink-haired girl approaching him. "Did you find the kid?"

"No, I can't find him. But I promise, I will. Trust me."

Not that he doubted her, despite how many people he isn't willing to trust here anymore, but somehow, she was different - he couldn't not trust her like the rest. But without waiting for her answer, she left again. Deciding to look for her instead, he ran around, spotting her just standing, head turning to different directions in hopes of spotting the little thief. "Sakura!" he called as she turned to him. "No luck huh?" he noticed how she lowered her head. "Um… hey, it's my wallet that was stolen, you don't have to be so hard on yourself." He assured, managing a small smile. "I'm sorry, but there has to be a good reason…" she said, looking back at him. Sasuke blinked before crossing his arms and thought about it. "If he's gonna use the money, he would still be inside the city, right?"

"Yes, I'm sure he is." She replied.

"Then help me find him Sakura. We won't get anywhere unless we catch him, right?" he didn't mean to sound exasperated, but he really needed his wallet right now. Not to mentioned, he worked hard to earn that money.

"Yeah but… if you do catch him, you have to hear his story out."

"Alright, alright. I'll ask him why he did it." He blushed a bit when her eyes looked at him, her lips having a grateful smile. "Okay, then I'll help you."

"Um…" he coughed and turned away. "Right. So, I'll make another round. Stay here in case he passes." She nodded, so he left to check the area one more time. He stopped when he saw the kid. "There! I got you now!" he ran after him when the child sprinted, luckily, he was running to where Sakura was. "Sakura! He's running towards you!"

The kid almost fell from the sudden halt when Sakura blocked his path.

"Uh-oh!"

"Hey, no more running." She scolded.

"We got him!" he went to the two, glad this was finally over. "You sneaky little runt…" he muttered, starting to scold the kid. "Stealing from people is a-"

"Sasuke…"

He twitched, then sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. "…very bad thing…" he finished lamely. "So tell me, why did you do it?"

"It's none of your business." He said, sniffing and turning away from the SOLDIER.

For that, Sasuke finally snapped. "When you stole my wallet, you made it my business!" but remembering that Sakura was there, he calmed down.

"You promised me a long time ago that you would never steal again." Sakura cut in, turning to the child. "Are you in some kind of trouble?"

The boy remained silent, which led to Sakura frowning.

Sasuke can stand being ignored, but seeing someone as kind as Sakura being treated the cold shoulder, he got a bit pissed. "If you're in trouble, just say so." He narrowed his eyes. "You've got Sakura all worried."

"My own wallet was eaten by a monster…" he finally confessed. "But I have to buy medicine and get home quickly!"

"Medicine..?" he repeated, sighing afterwards. "I'll get your wallet back from that monster…"

"R-Really?"

"Yeah, leave it to me." He managed a smirk.

"But… it's dangerous…" Sakura interjected, looking concerned once again.

"Heh. It's fine, monsters in this area are no match for me." He assured. _"I've been through hell after facing off Ifrit and Bahamut after all…" _he added inwardly. Not to mention the multiple missions he went, but the rewarded material, including the other summons like Odin, Chocobo, Tonrberry, Magic Pot, Cactuar, Moogle and Cait Sith were all worth it. _"Hmm… which leaves me to two more summons I have yet to search for…"_ he nodded at that and turned back to Sakura. "Besides, if I don't do this, he's gonna have to steal again, right?"

"Then I'll help too!" she exclaimed.

"No, it's okay Sakura, really. I got it." He glanced at the kid. "Just stay here and keep that guy out of trouble." He then turned back to the child. "So, where did you lose it?"

"The monster should still be on the street that goes to the park. Here's your wallet back, get whatever you need before you go."

He nodded and soon left.

* * *

"Hmm… the park is… this way."

"Hey, you there! Get back behind the gate right now!" a man warned.

"Huh?"

"Legions of monsters have appeared at the park!"

"The park huh?" he smirked, eyeing the said place. "That's gotte be it."

"What do you mean by that?! Everyone is evacuating!" the man argued. "It's too dangerous! Turn back, now!"

"Sorry but, those guys owe me some money and I have to go collect." Sasuke's eyes narrowed.

"What the-?! You're talking nonsense!" the man yelled.

"Don't worry about me," he assured. "You should get back behind the gate." Apparently, not too many people here are aware of the SOLDIER uniform.

Now that that's done with, he rushed to the park, spotting three giant worms. "Whoa…" he twitched. "The wallet… must be in one of their stomachs…" he continued twitching as he took his sword. "That means… I have to… ugh, Gross. Tch. Gotta love this job." And he charged at the three.

* * *

Sakura and the child, Konohamaru, turned to Sasuke who was walking towards them, dirt and slime all over his uniform as he had a blank look on his face, handing Konohamaru the wallet.

"You really got it back!" he exclaimed, taking it from the SOLDIER. "Eww… it's all slimy!"

"Quit complaining…" Sasuke muttered, eyes closed and turning away as he recalled how he had to dig inside the worms' stomachs before he finally found it. "You should be glad to just have it back…"

Sakura stepped forward with her hands clasped together before her, eyes worried once more. "Sasuke, were you hurt?"

"Not a scratch," he shrugged. "It's isn't a problem." He turned back to Konohamaru. "As for you, get ready for the longest lecture of your life." He noted how the child stiffened, but Sasuke relaxed. "Heh. Is what I'd like to say, but you can go. You're in a hurry right?"

Konohamaru was shocked at that. "Thanks…"

"Hn." He smirked and knelt down on one knee before him to be in eye level. "Next time you're in trouble, don't steal. Come talk to me first."

"Thanks for the offer, but, no thanks." He grinned devilishly. "I thought you looked pretty rich but you wallet told me a different story!"

Oh, that was it.

"Don't mock me you little brat! I'm gonna be a wealthy man soon! Sakura and I are gonna sell flowers!"

Konohamaru look dumbfounded. "Huh..?"

"We call it Operation: Midgar Full of Flwoers, Wallet Full of Money!"

Sakura laughed, confirming it to Konohamaru. "That's right. Midgar Full of Flwoers, Wallet Full of Money."

"Sakura-nechan, are you seriously doing this..?"

"Yes. I'm gonna try anyway, so, no stealing. Talk to me if you're in trouble, okay?"

Konohamaru turned back to Sasuke. "Alright nii-chan, I'll come talk to you." he grinned. "I have to go now. Thanks nii-chan," he glanced at Sakura. "Ne-chan." And he ran off, stopping to turn back to Sasuke who raised a brow. "You should be more careful on the street, unless you want your wallet taken again!"

"You obnoxious little-" a vein popped at the side of Sasuke's head. "Get lost already!"

And Konohamaru ran, laughing.

"Thanks for helping him out, Sasuke."

He blinked and turned back to Sakura. _"Odd… I suddenly calmed down…" _he sighed and scratched the back of his head. "It's nothing."

She smiled. "So, you're really serious about selling the flowers..?"

"After all I said, I can't turn back now, can I?" he smirked yet again. "Hm. Let's make a wagon."

"A wagon?"

"Yeah, a flower wagon, that way, we can cart them all around Midgar."

"True." She smiled once more. "Good idea."

With that said, they decided to look around a bit more. Sasuke knew he still had about three-to-four missions left, but he shrugged them off since it was his first time in the Slums. They then went to an item shop where the woman he asked earlier stood, apologizing for not being able to help before welcoming them. "We have a sale on this perfume for a limited time only. An ideal gift for that special lady friend of yours." She wriggled her brows to Sakura as Sasuke blushed and shook it off. "How about it? 300 gil?"

"I guess…"

"Heh. Smart boy. Here's a proposition for you. Normally, the price is 300 gil but if you were to blend in some of this valuable rose oil, this cheap perfume can be quite luxurious!" she grinned. "Would you like to try?"

He was nervous about this, but he wanted to prove himself that he can do it. "Sure."

"Very good!" she gave the instructions as he carefully added the oil, stopping when he counted the right amount of drops.

"Wow! You put in just the right amount! It smells good!" she got a calculator. "Let's add in the cost of oil added. A total of 530 gil."

"Here…" he handed the perfume to Sakura. "Hope you like it…"

She blushed and smiled. "Thank you." She took it and eyed the perfume. "I wonder what scent it is…" she took a whiff at it. "You made this right? It smells wonderful."

"Heh, really?" he turned away, avoiding her gaze. It was the first time he actually gave something to a girl, other than his own mother that is. "So, you like it?"

"Yeah. You're very talented." She teased, giggling as he turned even redder.

"W-well, I hope you enjoy it…" he blinked. _"What the hell am I saying?!"_

They wandered for a bit before stopping at a store where Sasuke asked for the man's help earlier.

"Oh, hi Sakura. Is that your boyfriend?"

She blushed and smiled a bit. "I'm not sure… yet." She added softly.

The man turned to Sasuke and recognized him. "Hey! The guy who was chasing that kid around! I heard about you from the neighborhood folks. I thought you were just a dumb outsider but it turns out that you're a pretty good guy! Sorry for misjudging you." He apologized. "Here's a small token of our appreciation."

Sasuke got one remedy and one soma.

"I have to say though, Sakura," the man said, grinning slyly. "You found yourself a pretty nice fella." He whispered.

"N-no… he's not my boyfriend I… j-just met him." She stammered, turning red. "But…" she glanced at him as he averted his attention elsewhere, studying his surroundings. "Maybe… there's something there…" she turned to Sasuke afterwards. "Hey, is it alright if I take a look around this store?"

He blinked. "So, the whole reason you wanted to go out was to shop?"

She looked sad. "Then, I won't…"

He was taken aback by her reaction. "Hey, I was just kidding. Go look as long as you like."

She smiled. "Thanks. Just for a bit, I promise."

He nodded and waited for her, looking around again before deciding to start a conversation. "You really like this store, huh?"

"Yeah. It's fun just looking around."

"Sou…" he murmured, getting an idea. "Hey, Sakura."

"Hmm?" and he watched, as she slowly turned her head to him, her pink hair swaying as he held in a breath, trying to regain his composure. "Um. Yeah. To show my gratitude for that 'hell-lloo' that woke me up," he grinned. "I'll buy you something."

"Oh, you don't have to. You're repaying me with one date, right?"

"You said not to be silly…"

"Well…" she grinned.

"Then consider it a one-day anniversary gift of our friendship." He offered.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Hn."

She picked an item from the store. "This one!"

"Alright, I'll go buy it, be right back." And he made a purchase, returning to show it to Sakura who smiled and turned her back to him so that he could help her put it on.

"There we go." He said.

"Did you put it on right? Will it stay on?"

"It should be fine, yeah, it looks great." He said, smiling at his work as she reached out a hand to touch the red ribbon that held her hair in a half-pony tail style. "Thank you, Sasuke, I'll always wear it, from now on." She smiled. "hey, do you still have some time?"

"I guess so, why?"

"Why don't we go to the park?"

"Kinda sounds like a date…"

"Uh-huh." She smiled while he turned red.

"Um… alright, let's go."

* * *

As they walked around, she started a conversation. "So, ever meet any SOLDIER members?"

He stopped and eyed her. So the people here aren't aware that he's a SOLDIER.

"Maybe." He answered out of habit. Itachi always taught him to be cautious, whoever he's talking to, when people aren't aware that he's a SOLDIER.

"Do you think they're happy?"

"What do you mean..?" he asked slowly, unsure why she asked that.

"Heroes to children… protectors of peace…" her eyes half-closed. "But… they're not normal…"

He remained silent. Unsure of how to react to that.

"They get some kind of special surgery, don't they?" she asked, turning back to him. He shrugged. "So they say." He said. She paused before continuing. "Normal is best, I think so, at least. Those SOLDIER people are kind of… weird…"

"They're… weird, huh?" he thought about that.

"And they're scary." She murmured. "They fight, and they love it."

Maybe it was because it was coming from her, but he felt that it was time he told her the truth. "Actually, I'm with SOLDIER."

She was surprised at the sudden confession, especially with how his eyes had looked a bit hurt from what she said, yet he managed to cover it up by remaining as indifferent as possible, but she can feel it, she could feel how his emotions are mixed up right now, that she quickly apologized. "I'm sorry…"

He shrugged, yet felt awkward all of a sudden, avoiding her gaze. She watched as he scratched the back of his head, thinking of what to say. To save him the trouble, she searched for a feature of him she could praise, and she recalled how she got caught in his dark eyes, how they seemed so intimidating, at the same time, welcoming. "So… pretty…"

Sasuke blinked and raised a brow at her, smiling a bit. "The face..?"

Sakure giggled. "The eyes." She corrected.

"Heh. You like them?" he walked over to her. "Then take a closer look. Eyes infused with mako energy, a SOLDIER trademark." He leaned closer to her as she did the same, unable to resist those onyx orbs before she realized how close their faces were. She blushed, smiled shyly and looked away. "Oh, you!" she pushed him away playfully as he laughed. "Color of the night sky, right?" he remembered how she confessed about fearing the sky, much more the night sky.

Her eyes widened when he said that, her lips smiling widely as she turned back to him. "Uh-huh… but not scary at all."

"Hn." He smiled warmly at her, for the first time since Itachi's disappearance. "I'll admit," he turned around, walking. "Things haven't been normal at all lately." He sighed and faced her. "What about you? How's your life going?"

"I was thinking it would be a normal day, but then suddenly," she smiled again. "Some guy fell out of the sky."

"That's not all that bad." He said.

"Yeah." She blinked when his phone rang, so he excused himself and answered it.

"Sasuke, return to the Shinra building now. Gaara has attacked us." Kakashi said.

"On my way." And he hung up, turning to Sakura. "Sorry but, duty calls." He didn't want to leave her like this. Actually, he still wanted to stay. But he was a SOLDIER 1st class, and he had to act as one.

She nodded. "Well, I guess I should get going then." And turned around to leave, stopping only to give one more look. "Will I… see you again?"

"Of course." He said confidently. He'll definitely come back here.

"I hope that your friend is okay Sasuke." She said as he gave her a questioning look and she smiled. "You talk in your sleep."

"Yeah. It'll be fine. I know that now."

Before they parted ways, Sakura went back and smiled. "Good luck." And she kissed him lightly on the cheek and left.

"_I'll definitely come back." _He thought, touching the spot where she kissed him and headed over to Shinra building, stopping when Konohamaru called him.

"I'm glad I caught up!" he said, running over to him. "I wanted to give this materia to you." He handed him a Steal material and Sasuke took it, eyeing him. "I'm never gonna steal again, so keep this for me."

"Good," he said. "Great to be a role model." He said, grinning.

"Don't use that material to do bad things…"

"Of course I won't." he sweat dropped. This kid…

"Oh and one more thing…" he grinned. "You're a really good person! A perfect match for Sakura-nechan!"

"What the-?!" he blushed. "Where did that come from?!"

"Just between you and me, she's pretty sweet on you." He then turned. "I'm rooting for you, nii-chan!" and left.

"Wow…" he said to himself. "Looks like I gained a lot of trust here." He eyed the materia, gripping it tightly before giving a determined look towards the exit of the slums. "I'll be sure to come back here."

* * *

"Huh?!" he was surprised at how the Shinra building was blazing. "Damn you Gaara. I'll stop you once and for all."

He was blocked by three of Gaara's clones, so he cursed and finished them off, advancing further and fighting off more clones. "I'm in a hurry so back off!" mechs came, then more clones, and he got pissed, jumping backwards and landing on one knee before taking out a red materia, smirking at his opponents. "You guys are pretty resolute about not letting me pass." His eyes narrowed as his grip on the materia tightened. "Well I'm pretty adamant about busting through!" and he summoned Bahamut.

"Megaflare!" he called out. The huge summon materializing, eyes glowing red as it flew all the way up and shot a megaflare to Sasuke's enemies.

"Heh." Sasuke said once the summon has gone as he continued advancing further. He got blocked by a higher level of Gaara's clone, and he smirked yet again. "Looks like a fight I'm going to enjoy." He charged, stopping to block an attack as he flinched. "Tch. That stung a little." He glared at it then rolled to the floor when it attacked. Sasuke got up and continued to slash from behind, instantly killing it without breaking much of a sweat. "Hn. I hate attacking from behind but I'm in a hurry so, run the credits because that's gotta be the end!" he ran and ran, slowing down when he saw Itachi flying above, descending to the ground and landing right in front of him. "I need your help." He began.

Just like Itachi to get straight to the point, something he picked up from him.

Unfortunately, Sasuke was not one to forgive easily, so he just walked pass his brother figure. "Do you?" he asked sarcastically, stopping and turning to narrow his eyes at Itachi. "Honestly, what are you thinking?"

"I'm not really sure myself." Itachi faced him. "At times, I feel as if my mind is mired in fog." He eyed the Shinra building. "But Sasuke, no matter what happens, I have to protect my honor." He raised his huge sword. "As long as I hold the Buster Sword." And brought it down, his back facing Sasuke's back. "Join my battle," he smirked. "Otoutou." It's been a long time since he last called the pup that. "Our enemy is all that creates suffering."

Sasuke stood his ground for a bit before sighing. That little brother thing got to him. "Alright, I'll help you." He turned to face Itachi, seeing only celestial feathers left before he felt someone wrap an arm around his waist and bring him up.

"I'll carry you there." Itachi said.

"No wait! I-"

"Flying feels… pretty good." He said with a grin as Sasuke twitched, seeing as he isn't able to do anything about it.

"Drop me, and I'll haunt you until you die." He muttered.

"If you die that is." Itachi mused.

* * *

Madara was pissed, though he didn't go berserk. He just easily eliminated the clones that charged at him before turning to Itachi and Sasuke who entered the building from the broken window next to him.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Sasuke apologized.

"You're late." Madara said, facing them fully.

"Heh. Madara, have you lost weight?" Itachi commented.

"Hmph."

Itachi smirked. "On to business. It is safe to assume that Fugaku has ordered Gaara to eliminate Orochimaru."

"The director of the Science Department?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes. He believes Orochimaru robbed him of his rightful position." He explained. Being a mentor and brother once more.

"Then," Sasuke realized this. "They'll be targeting the Science Department floor upstairs."

"Forget about Orochimaru." Madara muttered.

"Usual mood, I see." Itachi mused. "Take the floors below, Madara. I'll handle things outside." He turned to Sasuke. "Go up, Orochimaru will be your responsibility."

"Understood." And all three parted ways. _"I have no idea what Itachi is up to or what he's thinking, but he's back on the same side, and that's good enough for me."_ And he continued heading to the science department.

* * *

"Professor..?" he entered, spotting Orochimaru just standing there. "Phew. You're safe then."

"Please be quiet."

"The building is under attack by the Genesis army. They may be after you, professor."

"And you're my protection?" Orochimaru turned to eye him. _"Wait. This SOLDIER is the one who finished off my experiments back in the training room… hmm… interesting…" _a sinister grin formed on his lips before turning back to the front.

Sasuke twitched at the comment. "In any case, we have to evacuate. Will you come with me?" he forced himself to remain calm. _"Ugh. That sounded so wrong…"_

Orochimaru just gave a laugh. "Degrading monsters are nothing to fear."

"Are you talking about Gaara..?"

"Indeed. A memento from an unenlightened era, when men could deem any unclassified life form an Ancient."

"Unclassified life form..?"

"Jenova, the calamity that fell from the sky." Orochimaru said. "Your ignorance is of no consequence." He returned to studying his research. "SOLDIER's duty is not to think – it is to protect men who think for them, like me."

"Hn."

"Are you prepared to protect this brilliant mind of mine?"

Sasuke was getting annoyed. "Of course I'm prepared. Come and get it is what I say. I'll show them the power of the next generation SOLDIER 1st class."

"Most encouraging. I won't abide any losses to some second-rate scientist's creation." He glanced behind him as Gaara appeared. "Well, look who's here."

Gaara pointed a sword at him. "Fugaku sent you, correct?" Orochimaru didn't seem to be scared. "You think that if you obey Fugaku, he'll stop your body from degrading, is that it? Pitiful… just pitiful, I say."

"Gaara…" Sasuke rushed and pointed his own sword at the red-haired.

"A second-rate like Fugaku couldn't cure a cold!"

"Gaara, that's enough!" Itachi yelled, suddenly coming in.

"Ah," Orochimaru turned. "What do we have here?"

"My friend, the fates are cruel. There are no dreams, no honor remains. The arrow has left the bow of the goddess." Sasuke lowered his sword as Itachi came closer to Gaara.

"The entire cast of Fugaku's freak show." Orochimaru commented.

"_That's it." _Sasuke snapped. "Shut up, you!"

"LOVELESS Act IV." Gaara murmured.

"Where the two friends challenge each other to a duel." Orochimaru continued. "An ancient epic. I read it thinking it might aid my research, but pure drivel."

"How does the duel end?" Itachi asked.

"Unknown. The last act is missing, and yet to be discovered."

"There are various theories." Gaara said, firing a fire attack to create a huge crack on the wall before them. "The mysterious gift of the goddess… what is the meaning behind it..? For us, at least." And he flew off as Sasuke and Itachi chased him, the latter carrying the former.

"My soul, corrupted by vengeance hath endured torment, to find the end of the journey in my own salvation and your eternal slumber." He held a red materia on his left hand, raising it high in the air as it glowed.

Itachi eyed the huge summoning circle before them.

"He's summoning again…" Sasuke cursed.

"Sasuke, I leave this to you." And he put him down.

"Huh?"

"You can do this," Iatchi called, eyeing him from above as he gave a small grin. "Trust me."

"What the-?! Don't you dare leave me here again aniki!" too late though, since Itachi started dueling with Gaara while both in the air. His phone rang, and he blinked and took it out, answering it.

"Sakura?" he placed one hand on his waist as the summoned materia took shape from behind him. "Listen, can I call you back later?" he glanced at the summoned creature behind him, smiling slightly. "I have some company."

And right there, the materia took form, and he hung up, pocketing his phone and drawing out his sword as a smirk appeared on his lips. "Don't keep your guests waiting, she says." And he charged.

This was a newer version of Bahamut, and it was gonna be tough. The only materia he had equipped right now was Fira, Barrier, Cure and Gravity. The other two were for boost up of his defense. He was going to need help.

He closed his eyes as Itachi formed in his mind, recalling their training sessions before hand.

"_Prove your honor to me."_

He would always say that, and Sasuke always will. "I got it." And he rushed, assaulting the summoned creature with a series of hard punches and kicks.

Annoyed that it was still standing, he gripped the red materia of Odin, closing his eyes in concentration and seeking for help. "Zantetsuken." He said as Odin came out and slashed at Sasuke's opponent, managing to offer assistance to his summoner as Sasuke jumped and did one more final slash, defeating Neo Bahamut.

Once it disappeared, Sasuke looked around, the wind being his only company. "Where… is everybody..?"

_**To be continued…**_

_

* * *

Next on Crisis Core: Chapter 4: Alpha Wolf_

"Good news Neji!" The SOLDIER yelled. "Me and…" he trailed off, turning to the infantryman who took off his helmet to reveal blonde hair and sky blue eyes.

"Naruto."

"Heh. Correction then," he said. "Naruto and I are both backwater experts! Oh yeah!" it's been a long time since he last said that, and Itachi scolded him for that.

"Good." Neji said, stopping to catch his breath. "Carry on then."

_

* * *

A/N: And after Sakura's appearance comes Naruto's. _


	4. Alpha Wolf

_A/N: After so many months of not updating this fic, here's the 4__th__ chapter. I kind of browsed some videos in YouTube and stumbled upon a walkthrough, so the fic's up and running again! Actually, this was supposed to be done already, but my brother reformatted the computer, so my files for this got deleted, and I really hate re-writing. And like I said before, this doesn't exactly follow all the lines and scenes of the game. Anyway, here's chapter 4!

* * *

_

**Crisis Core (Revised)**_**  
Chapter 4: Alpha Wolf**  
Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor_

"Come on… pick up!"

Shikamaru ended his conversation with a fellow-ranked SOLDIER, before turning to Sasuke when he heard the reckless pup mutter curses at his phone.

"Who are you trying to call?"

Sasuke turned to his friend and sighed. "Madara." He answered. "I haven't been able to reach him in ages."

"Haven't you heard?" Shikamaru was surprised that the SOLDIER 1st class had no idea of the info he was about to give. "He locked himself in the data room and hasn't come out since." He glanced at the mobile Sasuke was holding onto. "Those are prohibited in the data room, so there's nothing you can do about it."

"Data room..?"

"He's apparently researching the history of the science department."

"Hn." The two turned back to the mobile when it rang, so Sasuke picked it up, his eyes lit up when he heard a familiar voice. "Sakura, what's up?"

"Um…" she sounded as if she was trying to come up with something to say, something reasonable as to why she called him. "I wanted to ask you," she paused, and then continued. "When will you make it for me?"

"Make w- oh." Sasuke suddenly recalled.

"The flower wagon," she sounded upset. "Did… you forget?"

"No," he said immediately. "I didn't forget, hang on, I'll head over."

And they bid goodbye.

"See 'ya Shikamaru!" and he dashed off.

* * *

He slowed down a bit when he reached the marketplace of the slums area, his mind thinking of what to say to the pink-haired girl, before stopping when he sensed someone's presence.

"Who would have thought I'd find you here, of all places."

"Itachi?" Sasuke turned around and saw his brother figure, smirking. "Where the hell have you been?!"

"Sorry," he shrugged. "I've been a very busy man."

"Hn, whatever." He sighed. "I haven't been able to contact Madara either."

"Has something happened?"

"Not really. He just locked himself up in the data room, reading old reports and such."

"I see." He turned around.

"Now where are you off to?" Sasuke grunted. "You and Madara…" he muttered. "I don't know what's up with you these days."

"Gaara and Fugaku are in Modeoheim."

Sasuke raised a brow. "You came to tell me that?" and he gave a grin. "You're actually working, aniki?"

"Hn." Itachi managed a small smile. "I'm still SOLDIER at heart, I suppose." He glanced at back at Sasuke. "I've informed Kakashi as well, they'll come to pick you up soon."

"And you're about to go." Sasuke gave a nod and turned hi back to Itachi. "Alright, alright…"

"Hey pup," Sasuke turned his head to Itachi, who gave a serious expression, before smirking. "Don't be reckless." And he flew off, leaving Sasuke to twitch, glare, and sigh.

"Pup this, pup that…" He murmured, before hurrying off to where Sakura was, sure that she has been waiting.

"_Church… church…" _he looked around, finally spotting the entrance to the holy place, and he grinned, unable to wait to see her again.

"Here goes." He whispered to himself, before running towards the stairs. He slowed down a bit, then climbed the steps, stopping halfway when someone called his attention.

"Sasuke, I need you in Modeoheim."

"_Damn it Neji…" _Sasuke sighed, glancing a bit at the long-haired Turk behind him. "I know." He said, raising a hand as if to tell him to wait. "Just give me a minute."

"Sakura," Neji spoke, making Sasuke stop. "Is not there."

The spiky-haired SOLDIER turned to Neji, eyes becoming serious.

"Is there a problem?" the Turk asked.

"And how is it that you know Sakura?" Sasuke asked back.

"It's complicated." Neji answered, crossing his arms. "Did she tell you anything?"

Sasuke shook his head, so Neji gave a nod. "Then I won't either." And a helicopter descended, waiting for the two to board it.

"Aww geez." Sasuke groaned. "Well," he straightened back up. "Whatever I guess." He said, raising a brow at the copter. "Whaaaatever."

And as the two got inside, they did not see a single white celestial feather before the closed doors of the church, before it was blown away by the wind.

* * *

"Ugh…" he staggered as he got back onto his feet, brushing off snow from his hair and body. "That's a fine how-do-you-do." He turned to the helicopter, flinching slightly as the flames ate it away.

He and Neji, plus two other Infantrymen were lucky enough to jump off before it could crash with them in it.

"Neji!" he called out, seeing nothing but snow, and more snow. "Hey guys!"

His ears picked up movement from behind, so her turned, relieved to see the other three men he was with, getting up and brushing snow off of their bodies. He walked over to them, just as Neji brought his phone out and tried to call for help.

"Hmph." He eyed his phone. "No signal out here."

"Look on the bright side," Sasuke smirked, aware of how Turks aren't used to traveling by foot. "At least we're all in one piece."

Neji was not to back down. "Thankfully, we have someone who is used to this kind of terrain." He shot back, smirking at Sasuke as well.

"Yeah, yeah." Sasuke waved a dismissive hand at him. "I'm a country boy."

"Alright then," Neji made a move to walk. "We would have reached Modeoheim by now, if we hadn't crashed." He stopped when he was a few feet ahead of the people he was with. "So we're going to have to make up for lost time."

"Hn, come on." Sasuke said, still a bit peeved since this mission stopped him from seeing Sakura.

He marched, the three following behind.

It was a long journey, and there were monsters that disrupted them, yet Sasuke managed to hold them off, with one of the Infantrymen who was close by assisting him.

Sasuke gave a smirk at the guy before leading the way again. He glanced back, seeing Neji and the other Infantryman a bit far from them.

He grinned, finding another way to annoy the Turk. "Hey, don't fall too far behind!" he tried to stop himself from laughing when he saw the glare Neji gave him. The SOLDIER just resorted to giving a snicker, and then look at his other companion walking at the same pace as he was.

"At least someone's keeping up."

"Well," The man spoke. "I'm a country boy too."

Sasuke blinked, curiosity taking over his facial expression. "From where?"

The man stopped, and so did Sasuke, as he crossed his arms and waited for a response.

"Nibelheim." He said, and Sasuke snorted, before laughing and turning around, trying to stop.

"How about you?" the man asked.

Sasuke managed to compose himself before turning back. "Me? Gongaga."

And this time, it was the man's turn to laugh, yet he tried to pass it off as a cough, remembering that Sasuke was a SOLDIER first class, which meant he had to respect the higher ranking teen.

"Hey," Sasuke called out, raising a brow. "What's so funny about that? You know Gongaga?"

"No, but… it's such a back water name."

"Ditto Nibelheim." Sasuke said back, before the two of them walked again, seeing Neji and the other Infantryman getting closer.

"Like you've been there!"

The SOLDIER smirked, turning back to the Infantryman. He sure had guts, and it was a nice change, instead of having to talk with the others who always stood at attention. "No, I haven't. But there's a reactor there, right?" he earned a nod, and Sasuke continued. "A mako reactor outside Midgar usually means…"

They both turned their heads to the side, and said at the same time: "Nothing else out there."

Their heads snapped back up at each other, and then laughed.

From the looks of things, Sasuke found himself another friend.

"Good news Neji!" The SOLDIER yelled. "Me and…" he trailed off, turning to the infantryman who took off his helmet to reveal blonde hair and sky blue eyes.

"Naruto."

"Heh. Correction then," he said. "Naruto and I are both backwater experts! Oh yeah!" it's been a long time since he last said that, and Itachi scolded him for that.

"Good." Neji said, stopping to catch his breath. "Carry on then."

Sasuke and Naruto both grinned at how Neji was far, but they still continued to move, talking about things and such, with Naruto having already discarded his helmet.

* * *

Sasuke stopped and ran a hand through his hair, inhaling a bit before exhaling. The snowy mountain gave little view, but he managed to see where he was leading the whole pack, but it didn't mean he also felt tired after that long climb. "Let's wait a bit." He told Naruto, seeing Neji and the other Infantryman about ten yards away or so.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

"Hn."

"What's it like to be in SOLDIER?"

"Wait," He blinked. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Well…"

"Hn." He smirked slightly at the blonde. "You'll know once you join."

Naruto sighed and slumped his shoulders. "If I can, that is."

"Come on," Sasuke said. "If I can do it, you can too."

Being taught by Itachi made him want to encourage others as well, just like how his brother figure always said things to make him much more determined.

When Naruto remained silent, Sasuke decided to just look at his surroundings, his eyes squinting a bit to try and get a good view of everything. _"Hey, there's something over there…" _he thought, walking up ahead as Naruto blinked and looked at his superior, wondering what could have made the SOLDIER go in stealth mode.

"Sasuke?"

"Naruto, look." He said, not looking back.

They both cautiously approached the edge of the mountain, and what greeted their eyes was a mako excavation test site.

There were guards patrolling the area, armed with weapons and such.

"A mako excavation test site, huh?"

The two looked back to see Neji reach them.

"I better go check it out." Sasuke said, getting up as he turned to Neji.

"Our primary objective is to investigate Modeoheim, we can't afford to lose people here." Neji turned back to the patrolling men. "At the same time, we can't ignore the activities of the Gaara Army."

"I know." Sasuke said, turning back to the site. "I'll have to infiltrate while avoiding combat."

"Precisely." Neji answered. "There's an entrance at the back of that warehouse, so, once you're inside, do what you like."

"Got it." He glanced at Naruto. "Looks like you get to see some SOLDIER action."

"Heh, looks like it." He said with a grin.

Sasuke gave a nod, then turned to Neji.

"Be aware of this blizzard, you can't stay unmoving for too long, so go do you're usual thing."

"…That sounded so wrong."

"I meant your squats."

"And how the heck do you know that information?" he pretended to look horrified, as Naruto tried to stifle his laugh, getting Sasuke's joke. "Shit, I knew it! You do have a thing for me!"

"Will you stop kidding around at a time like this?!"

Sasuke smirked. "And Itachi told me I can't make you lose your cool."

"…" Neji cleared his throat, composing himself. "Just… get moving."

* * *

He took a step back, and then another, and another, but the man he was trying to get away from, only continued advancing further.

"What's the meaning of this?!" a sword was pointed at his throat. "You need me Gaara, remember that! If you get rid of me, who's going to stop the degradation?"

The sound of the elevator coming up was ignored by them.

"The Jenova cells." Gaara answered, a bit shocked when a sword had slashed and locked against his. His eyes turned to glare at Sasuke, who returned the same gaze.

Fugaku made a move to run, not heeding how Sasuke had yelled at him to stop, but someone managed to prevent Fugaku from escaping.

"Naruto?" Sasuke managed to smirk. "Good work."

The blonde felt a bit smug to hear praise coming from the SOLDIER, but he had a hard time in keeping Fugaku steady, since the scientist kept struggling, and soon, he had elbowed Naruto and got the blonde off of him, attempting to run but Sasuke pulled away from Gaara and stopped the scientist from escaping.

"But nobody knows where the Jenova cells are being kept!" Fugaku exclaimed, trying to break free from Sasuke's grasp. "Not even Orochimaru knows! You'll never find it!"

"Then," Gaara began, having his sword pointed at them. "I shall willingly accept my fate." He smirked. "But I'll take the world…" and he brought down his sword without warning. "…with me!" and Sasuke reacted just in time to block the attack, giving Fugaku time to escape.

"Naruto!" He called the Infantryman who got up on his feet, attempting to assist Sasuke when Gaara grabbed the SOLDIER's wrist which held the sword, Sasuke doing the same to keep Gaara from slicing his head off. "Go!" he told the blonde, who nodded and ran after Fugaku.

As soon as the two were left alone, Gaara pulled Sasuke and slashed his blade, the SOLDIER managing to bring his sword up and block the attack. They both twirled once to keep their distance, their eyes holding the same intent glare they could muster, before charging to attack, blades clashing repeatedly.

The red-haired ex-SOLDIER brought his weapon up to get Sasuke to let go.

Sasuke watched his sword fly a few inches away from him into the air, before catching it and bringing it up to attack Gaara, who instantly deflected it with his crimson weapon.

Their eyes met, and the red-head twirled once and brought his sword down, Sasuke choosing to jump away and do a perfect one-hand back-flip.

Gaara waked towards him, eyes showing as much hatred as he could give, and Sasuke charged, making an attempt to stab him, but Gaara moved to the side, Sasuke mimicking his opponent since he saw how Gaara had planned on piercing him as well. Both their free hands simultaneously grabbed the other's hand which held their weapons, and once more, their eyes met, but Sasuke smirked and gave Gaara a head butt.

Sasuke did not wait for Gaara to recover and charged, but this was the same time that Gaara chose to summon out his wing and fly off, keeping a good distance away from Sasuke, before suddenly zooming in to charge.

Being equipped with the right type of materia, Sasuke attacked non-stop, having no need for his summons as Gaara felt the degradation state he was in weaken him.

Their sword fight was taking too long, and even if the young SOLDIER before him appeared to be ready for more, he was not as good as he used to be. He was degrading, he was growing weak, and therefore, he has no choice but to escape.

"Damn it." Sasuke cursed tackling Gaara, causing the former SOLDIER to fall onto his back. It was time to leave, he won't be able to last long in this state.

"Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul…" Gaara sat up, head lowered. "Pride is lost, wings stripped away, the end is nigh." He managed to get back up on his two feet, but he collapsed, face flat onto the rusty floor. "Such is…" He shut his eyes, but still stubbornly pushed himself up. "…the fate of a monster."

"We're not monsters," Sasuke said with narrowed eyes, his fingers gripping the handle of his sword tightly. "You hear me?!" he snapped. "We're SOLDIER!" he cried out proudly. "Where's your honor?"

Gaara stood up, albeit weakly, but he didn't answer Sasuke's question. "Even if the morrow is barren of promises, nothing shall forestall my return," he kept stepping back with each word he said, his back hitting the railing that prevented anyone from falling off a high spot in the excavation site. "If this world seeks my destruction," he jumped up, his wing keeping him afloat, before setting his feet down on the railing. He looked up at Sasuke, his eyes narrowed down to slits. "It goes with me." And he let gravity take him, making him fall down as Sasuke made an attempt to try and rescue him, but he knew it was futile.

He stared at Gaara's falling figure, until the darkness swallowed the ex-SOLDIER, no longer allowing the young SOLDIER to see him.

"Gaara…" he murmured, his grip onto his weapon tightening further. _"Why..?"_

Sighing dejectedly, he turned and left.

The cold air did not bother him much, for being a SOLDIER somewhat made him tolerate any type of weather that would come his way.

He stopped and looked up, seeing no sign of Neji or the other Infantryman. Not even Naruto was around. His head turned to the left, seeing a cave, as if it was beckoning him over. _"I guess that's the way to Modeoheim…" _trusting his instincts, he ran towards the cave, following the light at the end of it and stopping to see a few cabins. With a raised brow, he walked forward cautiously, head turning from left to right, eyes narrowed, hearing senses sharp, and feet moving as stealthily as possible to avoid anyone from hearing him.

Sasuke halted and saw a bathhouse before him, the wooden door broken – looking as if someone forced his way in. With a shrug, he entered the place, not surprised at the total wreck that greeted him. Seeing nothing significant up ahead, he turned to the left, following the path that led him to the bathing area.

Stopping to observe the area, he decided to conclude that no one was here, and that perhaps Naruto and Neji had gone elsewhere.

"_Great," _he glanced at his phone. "There's no signal too."

His ears picked up wings, and he turned to see a Griffin land on the ground he stood on, traces of being an Itachi clone were evident, but Sasuke knew it wasn't here to help him out, but rather, to finish him off.

"Hn, just my luck." He said, drawing his sword and preparing for battle.

The monster attacked, and Sasuke dodged by rolling onto the floor. Cursing, he decided to end this battle as soon as possible, so he jumped into the air and forced his blade to stab the monster's stomach, making it fall onto the floor and cry out in pain until it lay unmoving, showing that its life was over.

Sasuke placed his sword back behind him and eyed the monster he had just defeated.

"_Does this mean… Aniki is here too?"_

On his way here, there were no monsters to stop him from moving forward, but now that this clone appeared, he decided to check the area some more before leaving.

While walking around the bathing area, he spotted a set of stairs and climbed up, eyes widening when he saw Naruto on the ground, face flat.

"Naruto!" he called out, rushing towards him.

"Ngh…"

"Hey, talk to me!" he said, helping the blonde sit up.

"We're alright…" He managed to say, turning his head to where Neji was, seated on the floor with his back against the wall a few feet away from them.

Sasuke gave a nod and went to where Neji was.

"That way." Neji said, pointing to the door next to him. "You have to catch Fugaku," he said weakly, flinching from the pain on his left side. "Itachi's waiting for you."

"Got it." Sasuke got up and headed towards the door which led him to the lower floor of the bathhouse, which happens to be the boiler room as well.

The whole place was like a maze at first, but he managed to get to where Itachi was, seeing him standing in the middle of a spacious room, looking emo.

Shaking his head, Sasuke walked in, making his _brother _turn to face him and speak.

"It should have been me," he said. "I should have dealt with Gaara."

"Yeah…" Sasuke answered. "Then why did you send me?"

"To prepare you," Itachi soon turned to face him, but Sasuke was taken aback when the older SOLDIER pointed his buster sword at him. "For your next fight."

"What..?" Sasuke's surprised eyes soon turned to a glare. "Have you lost it?!"

The only answer he got was Itachi's blade swinging at him, Sasuke barely dodging, before he raised a hand at his brother. "Stop it!"

Itachi smirked. "Someone's waiting for you, no?"

Sasuke's furrowed brows turned to one of sorrow. "Aniki…" he noticed Itachi's brows twitch a bit, as if that name hit a spot. "Don't do this…" Yet even when he said that, Sasuke still drew his sword, in case Itachi would attack – and he was right, Itachi did swing his buster sword, and this time, Sasuke was lucky enough to have used his weapon to block the attack.

Their blades were locked, as their eyes met, Itachi's as blank as it could get, and Sasuke's being a mixed of anger, confusion, and sadness.

"Very good Itachi…"

The two turned to the new voice, seeing Fugaku approaching them.

"It is time to exact vengeance for our family's suffering."

Sasuke's eyes widened, and he turned to Itachi. "Family?!"

"No!" Itachi cried out firmly. "My father is dead!" he forced Sasuke's blade and his apart.

"Fine," Fugaku said. "Then do it for your mother."

"My mother's shame made her take her own life."

"Shame?" Fugaku questioned. How terribly misguided, she should have been proud." He said, turning to them. "Proud that she was the namesake of our experiment, Project G, or should I say, Project Gillian."

Itachi grabbed Fugaku's collar. "Don't say her name!"

"Gillian, the woman implanted with Jenova cells." He pulled Itachi's hand off of him. "Gaara, who had her genes mapped onto him during the fetal stage, yes…" he smirked. "Gaara was a failure, I'll admit it." He raised his head to meet Itachi's gaze, smirk turning slightly smugger. "But you, Itachi, you were actually bred inside Gillian's body." He raised his head and arm. "You… are perfection!"

Itachi soon pushed Fugaku away and turned his back onto the man he once called father.

"Sasuke, I am perfect." He said to his former subordinate without looking at him. "A perfect monster…" He faced Sasuke with a sad expression. "My cells can absorb genetic traits, and pass them along to others."

"A two-way conduit…" Fugaku commented. "Jenova's powers has passed onto you completely.

Itachi glared at Fugaku, before looking away to lower his head. "Sasuke, do you remember what I said? About our enemy, being all that creates suffering?"

"Yeah," Sasuke answered, his tone soft. "But you're not one of them." He said, glancing at Itachi who stood behind him, their backs facing each other.

"But I created my own suffering." Itachi turned around, facing the back of the puppy who used to follow him around. "Otoutou…" He smiled slightly. "Let me show you."

Sasuke slowly turned to face his brother, hearing how Fugaku had told the older SOLDIER to stop it.

Itachi raised his left hand as four types of his clone arrived and charged at them.

"Damn!" Fugaku rushed towards Itachi, trying to stop him. "At least one sample!" but Itachi only pushed him off.

Bracing himself, Sasuke attempted to defend, but the clones moved pass him and all clung to Itachi.

"Itachi!" He yelled, seeing his mentor, and brother, turn into a new type of monster.

Due to all these happening, he had completely missed how Fugaku ran off, but he could care less right now, because he was currently worried over Itachi, and he was even scared of what this battle would result to.

The monster wasn't capable of speaking, but it growled and stomped all six feet onto the ground, showing signs of superiority. The trident on its right hand was raised, and then thrust forward, Sasuke moving his head to the side, but not fast enough, since the weapon gave him a cut on his left cheek, yet his glare remained on his eyes.

"_How could you do this to yourself?" _he thought. "Itachi…" He gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. "What happened to honor?!" and he got into a fighting stance, seeing that there was no other option but to fight, whether he likes it or not.

The creature charged forward, taking advantage of its large size to shove its smaller opponent, causing Sasuke to drop to the ground and roll over to avoid getting stomped by the monster.

Quickly getting back up, he held onto his sword tightly, his mind telling him to fight, but his heart was unwilling to hurt Itachi.

He was equipped with the right items and the right materia; it would be easy for him to defeat his enemy, but he can't bring himself to harm this particular opponent. "Aniki…" He shut his eyes, his opponent charging towards him with the trident poised for stabbing.

Giving a battle cry, Sasuke brought out the Odin materia, deciding to end this with one blow, and so, he summoned the horse-riding warrior: "Zantetsuken!"

Odin materialized before him, and without hesitating, charged at his summoner's enemy and gave one slash of his blade, passing by the monster form of Itachi, before fading back to the red ball of materia, its original form. The orb floated, before zooming back to Sasuke's hand, who eyed how the monster cried out in pain, slowly falling to the ground, before it reverted back to Itachi's form.

"…_He's degrading…" _he thought, eyeing how weak his aniki looked right now. The once strong SOLDIER now lay helplessly on his back as Sasuke walked forward, kneeling down on one knee right next to him. "Aniki…"

Itachi laid there, eyes half-opened as he glanced at Sasuke. "Otoutou…" he began. "You have my thanks." He gave a smile, and Sasuke could feel his heart beginning to ache at the idea that he could lose someone he considered his family. "This…" Itachi added, bringing the buster sword up. "…is for you."

His fists clenched, his brows narrowed, his eyes soon shut – Sasuke refused to cry, he did not want to show any weakness.

"Sasuke…"

"No." He said, shaking his head. If he took the sword, it would mean that Itachi would be gone… for good.

"You know as well as I do that there's no hope for me to live."

"…Damn…" he said under his breath. "Damn it!"

"Hn." Itachi managed a smirk. "Take it, pup…" he gave a slight laugh. "Or should I say…" he eyed Sasuke, who looked back at him, reluctant in taking the buster sword. "Alpha Wolf?"

That only concluded everything.

Sasuke was called a puppy for always following Itachi around – and for that, some of the men in Shinra called Itachi the Alpha Wolf of the pack, but now that he was dying, it was time to pass on the responsibility to the pup, it was time for Sasuke to grow up and move on without him.

"And… I haven't said this but… I'm proud of you," his smirk turned to a small grin. "Congratulations on making it to first."

"Aniki…"

"Heh." He closed his eyes. "Otoutou… protect your honor, always…"

And as soon as those words left him, he was silent, and Sasuke knew that Itachi had gone, and he couldn't – no, wouldn't – want to accept it, but he had to…

"Aniki." He tried to call him back, but he knew it was useless; so, he got up and placed the flat side of the buster sword against his forehead, just the way Itachi used to do.

"_Embrace your dreams…" _he remembered Itachi's words. _"If you want to be a hero, you need to have dreams… and honor."_

After a silent prayer, he brought the sword down and eyed Itachi's lifeless body, eyes half-closed and refusing to cry, but his breathing was starting to quicken, and droplets of rain began to pour. As soon as a single drop had landed on his left brow and trickled down to his eye, it rained harder, hiding the fact that his eyes had begun to let the tears out.

Funny how it was only now did he notice that the area they fought in had no roof…

* * *

"Hey, Sasuke?" she called. "The sky is closer in the city above, right?" she got up from her kneeling position on the floor, a smile still on her lips. "Kind of scary but… the flowers might like it…" she trailed off when she turned to him, seeing his hunched figure on the floor near the entrance. "…maybe…" she continued, her eyes turning forlorn as she saw his shoulders shaking, knowing full well that he was crying.

She didn't know how to react when she saw him outside the entrance of the church earlier, soaked in rain water and eyes looking lifeless. She was worried at what had happened, since she was used to seeing him smiling, used to hearing him joke around and such.

"Sasuke…" She whispered, walking over to him and kneeling down behind him as her arms shot out to embrace the SOLDIER. Upon making contact with him, she heard him cry further, noticed his fists clenched tighter, and somehow, the pain he felt, also made her want to cry. "It's alright…" She said, closing her eyes and hugging him tighter. "Itachi…" she murmured. "Is watching over you, he'll never leave you… he's with you, in spirit." She ignored the tears that fell from her own eyes. "I'm here," she added. "You're not alone Sasuke, I'm here… I'll be here…"

* * *

Everyone had given their condolences, Kakashi had offered a proper burial for Itachi and tried to comfort him, but he did not hear any of them, not even Shikamaru.

All he could hear were Itachi's words, lessons, and teachings. All he could see were the past memories he had with his mentor.

"Aniki…" He murmured, staring at the buster sword he held with both hands, the tip of the blade resting on the floor, the whole thing in between his legs that was spread apart. Slowly, he got up and raised the weapon in the air, before twirling it, a habit and skill that not everyone in Shinra managed to copy, before setting it on his back, the magnetic emblem keeping it in place. _"It's time then." _He thought, eyes holding a determined gaze as he looked forward.

The SOLDIER floor he was currently in was deserted, since the other men had decided to give him time to reflect and reminisce.

"_Starting today," _he thought, walking confidently towards the elevator. _"Uchiha Sasuke is no longer the puppy everyone once knew," _his brows furrowed. _"But rather, the new Alpha Wolf who will take over the previous one," _he stepped inside the elevator and watched as the doors closed. _"Which happened to be you, aniki."_

And it was funny how in a wolf pack, in order to be the new leader, you have to fight and win against the current leader; the only difference is, the pup never wanted to become the leader, he was only forced by the real one.

The elevator stopped and opened, Sasuke stepping outside and heading out of the building, where the men he was assigned to command stood in a platoon, waiting for his arrival.

Starting today, he would take everything much more seriously.

He walked in front of the men, stopping upon recognizing one of them, despite the helmet that concealed his identity.

Sasuke chose this time to drop his aura of superiority and placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "So you want to be in SOLDIER?" he smirked. "Hang in there." And he pulled back his hand and walked towards the middle, missing the smile the man, Naruto, sent him. "So, is everybody here now?" he asked.

"Sir!" they all replied.

"You're all rookies, right?"

"Sir! Yes sir!"

"Hn." He couldn't help the smirk. "One piece of advice-" he stopped, lowering his head slightly as he frowned, remembering that he was no longer a happy-go-lucky and reckless pup that Itachi likes to call him. "No, an order." He said firmly, raising his head to eye each and every one of the men. He took the buster sword from his back and raised it, before letting the flat side rest against his forehead, mimicking how Itachi once did it.

"Embrace your dreams…" he said, lowering the sword to his side. "And… whatever happens, protect your SOLDIER honor." He finished. "Got it?"

"Sir!"

"We're all coming back here alive, you hear me?" he raised the sword yet again, his subordinates raising their heads in the air. Sasuke's eyes remained at the tip of the blade. "Let's go." He said, unsure if he meant to say it to the men, of to the sword, as if it was Itachi.

* * *

"_Project G was Itachi's mother's experiment. I apprehended Fugaku in Modeo and turned him over to the company. After that, the company put me on standby; that was a while ago…_

"_Now… Shinra is in disarray. The Turks are hanging around me everyday, saying our vacations 'overlapped'… Tch. Yeah right._

"_But none of them ever mentioned about Itachi, not even Gaara – almost as if… they never existed. Is that how little SOLDIER is worth these days? What do I have left to fight for? What is SOLDIER honor?"_

He opened his eyes and sighed, before getting up and deciding to do some squats. His eyes watched as the waves hit the shore, his hair following the soft wind's movements. He was supposed to enjoy his vacation here at the beach, he was even dressed in board shorts, as if ready for a swim, but he can't seem to bring himself to do so, and decided some squats may relieve him of his stress.

"Sun tan lotion?"

He turned to see Tenten approaching with an amused expression.

"No, never mind that." He grunted. "What is this? Are they putting me out to pasture?" he cursed; just when he decides to be serious, just when he finally accepted his role as the new Alpha Wolf, _this_ happens.

"You could use some R&R." Tenten nodded at that.

"I'm bored." He exclaimed. He used to enjoy vacations, but now, he doesn't give a damn. "That's it, I'm calling them."

"Director Kakashi's not in." She said, making Sasuke stop to look at her. "He's been missing for a while now. It was him who was funding Fugaku's research, using the company's money."

"Are you serious?!"

Everyone he knew somehow always ended up betraying him and Shinra, and he was beginning to doubt even Tenten or Neji.

"We're interrogating Fugaku, so we should learn more soon."

"What's wrong with them?" he asked, looking over at the sea.

"Hm?"

"People." He clarified. "What are they all thinking?"

"The truth lies within each person, but even the truth seems suspect since it leaves their mouths."

He looked at her, then back at the water, then back at her. "Tenten, go do something." He turned to his bag, fishing for his mobile.

"Calling Sakura?" her voice had a teasing tone to it, and Sasuke's eyes widened as he immediately turned to Tenten. "How do you know that? Am I being watched?!" she tried to stop herself from laughing. "No, she's the one being watched. That girl is an Ancient, the only one left in this world. You didn't know?"

"She…" his fists clenched for a while, before he relaxed again. "Never said anything." He turned to the sea. "The only one left in the world huh?" he gave a small smile. "She is… one of a kind."

Their conversation was cut when Neji came running down, an urgent expression on his face.

Sasuke wanted to comment on how hot it was in the beach yet the Turk still wore a suit, but he held his tongue when Neji pointed at the shore.

"Head's up! Gaara copies!"

Three clones came out from the water, dressed in a diver's suit, each holding onto a gun as Sasuke cursed and took the closest thing he could use as a weapon – a beach umbrella.

"_I look pretty stupid but, this is an emergency!"_

He heard Neji tell Tenten to step back, since she had no weapon with her at that time. He took out his hand gun and shot a few more clones that came from the water, while Sasuke dealt with the others that kept coming at him.

Despite his weapon being a beach umbrella, he still proved his rank and status as an excellent SOLDIER.

After fending off a couple more copies, Sasuke, Neji, and Tenten approached one of the fallen clones.

"These guys are still around? But Gaara…" Sasuke trailed off.

"Maybe Gaara is still around too." Neji answered. "When the soul leaves the body, it returns to the life stream – the river of souls that circles our planet." He paused. "Perhaps Gaara's soul is…"

"Controlling copies from the life stream?" Sasuke supplied. "Is that what you're telling me?"

"It was merely a supposition, in any case, your vacation is over Sasuke." He turned to leave. "Junon is under attack by an unknown force, you're going there with me to investigate."

Sasuke raised a brow, and his habit of annoying Neji never left him as he grinned. "I have to go with you again? Are you sure you don't have a thing for me?"

And Tenten burst out laughing as Neji turned red and glared at Sasuke. "Will you just pack up?!"

"Hn." He smirked. "Whatever."

* * *

After a few hours of traveling via copter, the three of them arrived in Junon.

Apparently, after Sasuke's joke, Neji had asked Tenten to join them.

Junon greeted them in wreck and havoc, and they were taken aback by how much damage there was.

"This is terrible." Sasuke said, eyes narrowing. Civilians were running pass them, and they soon found out why: Gaara copies were rushing, and they were armed with guns. "They're here too, huh?" Sasuke drew out the buster sword. "They're just running wild." He grunted, glancing at Neji and Tenten who were ready for battle. "Let's go." He told them, the two nodding as they defended the civilians and finished off the clones that kept coming at them non-stop.

As soon as the copies have been eliminated, Neji knelt down on one knee to eye one of the fallen ones. "Fugaku is currently in Junon; his presence here and this attack can't be unrelated."

"It's not over, is it?" Sasuke asked rhetorically, head lowering and fists clenching. Lately, he's noticed how much his hands always shook and clenched.

"We'll begin evacuating the residents." Neji said, getting up and turning to Sasuke. "You find Fugaku and make sure he's kept safe."

"You're making me baby-sit that guy? Don't you think I'd be put to better use in combat?"

"That may be true, but…" He crossed his arms. "That scientist has access to top-secret information. The president insists that his safety be priority one." He lowered his head. "After director Kakashi's sudden disappearance, SOLDIER's chain of command has been shaky at best. This attack is an attempt to exploit that weakness, so, Sasuke," he eyed the SOLDIER. "You must protect Fugaku."

"Hn." He straightened up. "Funny how he's an enemy yet has to be protected."

"Fugaku is currently being held in the detention center on the 8th level of upper Junon." Tenten spoke. "You can use the emergency elevator to go up, it's at the end of this path." She turned serious. "We're counting on you."

"He is still being interrogated; he can't fall into enemy's hands now." Neji added.

Sasuke gave a nod. "Understood." And he turned to run towards the elevator that Tenten was talking about.

As he ran, he received an email from Shikamaru, informing him of the situation in Junon, and how he was in a chopper, picking up their wounded comrades. Sasuke, while waiting for the elevator to take him to his destination, replied that he knew what Junon's current situation is and that he was going after Fugaku.

When he reached the floor he was aiming for, he got off of the elevator and saw a clone that looked like the exact replica of Gaara, knocking out the remaining Shinra SOLDIER that fought with it.

With a click of his tongue, he drew his sword and rushed towards the clone, fighting an endless battle of sword clashing against sword.

Being experienced in defeating so many clones of different levels, he didn't have a hard time eliminating it, and he turned to his fallen comrades, then at the elevator where a SOLDIER 3rd class emerged, running towards him to report.

"Sir! Fugaku has escaped the detention center!" he cried out. "The timing of the attack was too perfect; it can be assumed that he's receiving outside help!"

"Calm down." Sasuke said. "Which way did he go?"

"Upper level of Junon, you can go there by opening the central passageway gate and go straight."

"Alright, thanks," he glanced at the knocked out men. "If you can just tend to them, it would be great help."

"Yes sir!"

"In the mean time," he turned to the direction he would be heading for. "I better go protect Fugaku from himself." And he rushed off, eyes narrowed to a determined look when he spotted the familiar white lab coat the scientist wore. With a glare, his mouth opened to yell at the scientist: "Fugaku! Stop right there!"

"Tch." Fugaku turned and ran, with Sasuke gritting his teeth and he ran faster.

"_You're not getting away this time!"_

He kept running, all the while, successfully getting rid of the multiple clones of Gaara that blocked his path – and he was starting to lose his cool since they were annoying him.

"Why I oughta – goddamn it! Fugaku! Stop right now!" as much as he hated to curse and curse, he couldn't help it.

"Hmph!" Fugaku switched open another passage, and Sasuke halted when a tank-like machine came in, stopping him from advancing.

He caught how Fugaku gave a smug smirk, before leaving.

"I… have no _effing _time for this!" he took out a red orb and summoned Neo Bahamut, the golden dragon coming out and eliminating the machine with one attack.

As soon as it was sure that the thing was _dead_, it reverted back to its original form, a red materia, and headed back to Sasuke's awaiting hand.

The SOLDIER's glare intensified further as he eyed where Fugaku went to, before turning around when he heard footsteps fast approaching.

"Neji." He greeted.

The Turk gave a nod back. "We've been able to contain the enemies in this area, if we lock this door, we can hold the enemy off, and the residents will be safer." He walked over to the SOLDIER. "You better get going if you want to fulfill your mission."

"Hn." He turned and ran off, still on the move to chase after the scientist that was starting to really, _really_, piss him off.

When he saw where Fugaku was headed, he cursed loudly. "That leads to the airbase!" he made his running feet move faster than ever.

"Heh." Fugaku smirked and looked at Sasuke. "Are you sure it's me you should worry about?"

Sasuke furrowed his brows and slowed down when he heard two machines descend on the ground and head towards where he came from – where the residents of Junon were staying!

"If you don't stop these things, what will become of Junon?" and he headed to the direction of the airbase.

The young SOLDIER twitched and turned to the machines. It's either he risk the lives of many citizens to get to Fugaku, or save them and just do his best to catch the scientist – _"Damn my stupid conscience!" _he brought his sword out and dashed towards the machines. _"I gotta love this job."_

* * *

Fugaku panted, finally reaching his destination, but he soon heard a huge mech being destroyed, as static erupted from it. He turned to see Sasuke strap his sword back and approach him with a glare on his face.

"Enough." He said, fists clenched at his sides.

He thought he had finally cornered the scientist, since if Fugaku went further, he would fall into the sea and drown, but he was surprised when the man only smirked at him.

"Really? Are you sure?"

Sasuke's glare intensified as he made a move to charge at Fugaku, who leaned back and let gravity take him down. The SOLDIER thought he committed suicide, but he thought wrong as soon as he saw Fugaku emerge, being carried by two copies of Gaara with wings.

"Better luck next time, _pup_."

His fists clenched again, and his brows furrowed. "Don't call me _pup_." He hissed and glared at the ground. _"I should have known."_

Neji and Tenten ran pass him, yet it was obvious how it would be useless even if they try to run to the direction where the clones took Fugaku.

"Mission failed." Sasuke stiffened at that voice. "This goes on your permanent record."

The younger SOLDIER turned to see the eyes of the famous hero.

"Madara…" he acknowledged, his eyes soon turning stern. "Long time no see."

"Let the Turks take care of the rest." He said. "I was on my way to Modeoheim, but I heard you were in the area."

"Lucky me." He said sarcastically.

Madara smirked slightly. "I see you haven't changed." He turned serious yet again. "The situation has not resolved, Gaara copies have been sighted around the world."

"That can't be…" Sasuke said slowly. "We wiped out those copies."

"Did Gaara really die?"

"…"

"I'll take that as a no," Madara turned around. "They've been sighted in Midgar as well."

"I see…"

Madara eyed Sasuke at what he was about to say next. "The slums too."

Although the Alpha Wolf did not show any reaction, Madara's keen eyesight caught how Sasuke's shoulders stiffened, and noted how his clenched fists tightened. He smirked, knowing fully well why the teenager reacted this way – when Itachi was still alive, he had informed him of a pink-haired girl in the slums. And even if Sasuke has yet to know this bit, Itachi apparently had a little chat with the girl with regards to Sasuke.

"Permission to return, granted." Madara said.

"Uh… yeah…" He was taken aback by that.

"Take care." Madara gave a nod, and raised a hand as if to say Sasuke can go.

"You too." He walked off, but stopped and turned back to the legendary hero. "Hey," Madara glanced at him. "What's going on in Modeoheim?"

"The device Fugaku was using has been stolen."

"Gaara..?"

"Probably." He noted how the boy who held a strong resolve suddenly return back to the pup he used to be when Itachi was still alive; he saw how Sasuke opened his mouth, about to say something, before closing it again, and then repeating the process. This occurred for about two to three times, and Madara sort of got the idea.

Sasuke already knew of his past with Itachi and Gaara, and with the former being dead, and the latter being a rogue SOLDIER, the youngster was probably starting to worry that he too may turn his back to SOLDIER and become his opponent.

"We'll meet again soon."

A nod from the younger SOLDIER, and he made a move to turn to leave, after saying: "I'll hold you to that."

Madara watched his retreating figure with a half smirk and half smile, eyeing how the raven haired SOLDIER walked off with confidence, studying the improvements and changes the used-to-be puppy Sasuke had undergone – and somehow, as the teen's figure slowly disappeared from his sight, Madara turned back to the sunset, and acted as if he was speaking with Itachi. _"Don't worry," _he thought, the image of a younger Itachi back then entering his head, and how much he and Sasuke were so alike at that time._ "I'll take care of him," _he closed his eyes. _"Just like how I used to take care of you and Gaara."  
_

* * *

"My friend, your desire is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess." A man spoke, holding out a Dumb Apple, arm outstretched towards the setting sun. "Legend shall speak, of sacrifice at world's end." He brought the apple back to him. "The wind sails over the water's surface; quietly, but surely."

_**To be continued…

* * *

**_

_Next on Crisis Core: Chapter 5: A SOLDIER's Promise_

"Don't worry." He said, smiling a bit, and she blushed when he reached out a hand to touch her hair, pulling it to his nose and lips as he closed his eyes. "When you go above, I'll go with you, so there's no need to be scared."

When his eyes opened, she gazed into them, reminding her of how the night sky frightened her, but when she looked into his eyes, she did not feel a hint of fear.

Slowly, her lips formed a smile as her blush faded when he let go of her hair. "Thank you, Sasuke." She eyed him for a moment. "Hm, your hair has grown longer," She pointed to his bangs that now reached his chin, and he blinked and touched his hair. "It has?" she gave a nod and walked closer. "And you've grown a bit taller to." She said, placing a hand on where her height reached, and she made it move to up until where she reached Sasuke. "You're a head taller than me now, back then, my forehead reached your lips." She turned away to hide the blush that crept on her cheeks when an image of him kissing her forehead plagued her thoughts.

"Hm, I hadn't noticed…" He said quietly. "I guess I'll get a haircut when I go back."

"Ah, no need to." She smiled. "You look cute, actually."

"W-what?" he stammered, face turning red as he looked away. "Um… right, the flower wagon." He turned his back to her. "Let's get started."


	5. A SOLDIER's Promise

**Crisis Core (revised)  
**_**Chapter 5: A SOLDIER's Promise  
**__Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor…

* * *

_

He dashed towards the church, glad that the copies were out of the way and have not harmed anyone in the slums. Aside from that, there wasn't much damage done, and he couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"It's been a while…" he said to himself, slowing to a walk when he was nearing the entrance of the church. "Hm?" he stopped and turned his head behind him, seeing nothing but scraps and other junk surrounding the area. _"Odd… I thought I felt some kind of presence…" _he turned back to the doors that led to the interior of the church. _"Was it just my imagination?" _shaking his head, he pushed the doors open, unaware of how a small machine from Shinra was headed towards his location.

He looked up, a small grin on his face, only for it to turn to a surprised look, and then he scowled.

"Sasuke!" Sakura exclaimed, seeing the SOLDIER hold onto the handle of his buster sword as it slowly approached the winged dog-slash-wolf creature with caution. Sakura shook her head at him, as if saying not to harm the creature, but he didn't see her, and he continued to advance slowly, careful with his movements in case the thing would suddenly attack Sakura, since she was merely three to five feet away from it.

The monster soon raised its head, showing the face of Itachi tattooed on its lower jaw, and Sasuke instantly stopped himself from advancing.

He looked closer to confirm it. "An… Itachi copy?" he lowered his hand, watching as the thing sat down, informing Sasuke that it had no intention of fighting, so he let his guard down, but it came back up when the church doors behind him opened, and in came a machine that had followed him.

It moved its "head" from Sasuke, to the copy, and back, while the SOLDIER made a move to block Sakura, and the copy got back up on its four feet.

Without warning, Itachi's copy flew towards the machine, tackling it head on, causing the thing to erupt static.

Sasuke knew that it was about to explode, so he faced Sakura and pushed her on the ground, just in time as the thing gave a loud boom – yet it didn't cause too much damage to the area, being only a small machine, half of Sasuke's size.

The two of them got back up, seeing the clone of Itachi smoothly land back on the ground. Sakura smiled while Sasuke smirked at it. "Thanks." He said, the creature raising its head, as if giving a silent howl. "Was it…" Sakura began, turning to the spiky-haired SOLDIER who still stood protectively in front of her. "…Protecting us?"

"Yeah," he smiled slightly, glancing at her. "Probably."

The copy soon fell on its side, and both Sasuke and Sakura were shocked and soon walked over to it, Sasuke kneeling down on one knee next to it, while Sakura bent over, both palms against her knees.

"Looks like… it's degrading…" he said.

She placed both hands against her mouth, feeling sad for the creature. "Poor thing…" She whispered, her eyes showing deep and genuine concern.

"Does this mean…" Sasuke's serious eyes turned to one of confusion. "Itachi is out there too?" He got back up when the copy stood, and Sakura moved towards it, wanting to help it out, but it spread its wings and flapped it, making it float in the air for a while as Sasuke remained alert, in case it suddenly turned on them. It flew around them, its head turned to them, before flying up in the air and deciding to sit on one of the wooden boards that used to hold the roof of the church.

"It was… I don't know… so sad."

Sasuke glanced at Sakura for a while, before turning to the copy. "What did you… come here to do..?"

She turned to him, suddenly recalling about the flower wagon. "So, a flower wagon!" she exclaimed, trying to brighten things up. "Let's make one!"

"Yeah, but…"

"Don't worry." She smiled at him, and he couldn't say no to that expression, so he looked back at the copy and pointed a finger at it. "Can you hear me?" he yelled. "Stay right where you are!" Sakura giggled, and then clasped her hands behind her back and walked over to the flowers, barely hearing Sasuke say something softly: "I'll… I'll take care of things…"

"Come on Sasuke, come this way!" she said happily.

It had been weeks since she last saw him, and that was when she heard from him that Itachi died by his own hands, but she knew that he did not mean to, but rather he had to. She was an Ancient, therefore, she can feel the emotions of others, and even sense if someone's soul is about to join the life stream – and it just so happens that she had sensed Itachi's.

"Yeah…" He murmured, walking over to her. "Hey, Sakura, when the wagon's done, you're going to sell flowers above the plate too, right?"

She thought about it, seeing how he looked hopeful.

"Yeah, but I'm still a little scared so… I'll fill the slums with flowers first."

"Don't worry." He said, smiling a bit, and she blushed when he reached out a hand to touch her hair, pulling it to his nose and lips as he closed his eyes. "When you go above, I'll go with you, so there's no need to be scared."

When his eyes opened, she gazed into them, reminding her of how the night sky frightened her, but when she looked into his eyes, she did not feel a hint of fear.

Slowly, her lips formed a smile as her blush faded when he let go of her hair. "Thank you, Sasuke." She eyed him for a moment. "Hm, your hair has grown longer," She pointed to his bangs that now reached his chin, and he blinked and touched his hair. "It has?" she gave a nod and walked closer. "And you've grown a bit taller to." She said, placing a hand on where her height reached, and she made it move to up until where she reached Sasuke. "You're a head taller than me now, back then, my forehead reached your lips." She turned away to hide the blush that crept on her cheeks when an image of him kissing her forehead plagued her thoughts.

"Hm, I hadn't noticed…" He said quietly. "I guess I'll get a haircut when I go back."

"Ah, no need to." She smiled. "You look cute, actually."

"W-what?" he stammered, face turning red as he looked away. "Um… right, the flower wagon." He turned his back to her. "Let's get started."

She couldn't help but laugh at his behavior. He was definitely different from the other guys she's met, and one thing is for sure, Itachi was right when he said how Sasuke may look serious and tough at times, but he sure was like a puppy that craved for and shied from attention.

"I'll go and gather the materials, you wait here, alright?"

She gave a nod, and he took off, trying to forget what she said about him being cute. _"Why the heck am I blushing?! I mean, sure I admit she's cute… beautiful actually, and well, it's not like I like, like her, right..?" _somehow, he could feel the eyes of Itachi's clone on him, as if giving a mocking smirk, and habitually, he glared at it. "Behave yourself." He told it, before leaving the church.

As soon as he closed the doors behind him, he saw three machines – the same as the one that Itachi's copy defeated inside.

"So, there're more of you, huh?" he smirked and drew out his sword, and with a few quick slashes, easily got rid of them. He turned to his right after returning his sword and saw Neji walking towards him. "What are these things?" he asked the Turk, who eyed the three fallen and broken machines. "A new automated mobile weapon; they automatically detect and attack monsters." He sighed and closed his eyes. "Arms development deployed these in Midgar as an Anti-Gaara copy measure. These new models were able to eliminate most of the copies inside Midgar."

"Impressive, but, why the heck was I attacked? Can't they tell the difference between a SOLDIER operative and monsters?"

"Currently, no."

"Tch. That's annoying."

"They'll fix it, eventually."

"By the way, Neji, I'm annoyed with you too." He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at the Turk. "You were spying on Sakura again, weren't you?" Neji chose to walk away instead. "Silent treatment again?" Sasuke smirked and shook his head.

"If you want to go and play with her, then go and do so."

Sasuke was taken aback by that.

"Hey, I am not playing around! I'm only protecting her!"

They saw a kid coming their way, and Sasuke recognized him as Konohamaru – the little thief from before.

"Hey, nii-chan! I heard you were going to make a flower wagon for Sakura! I'll help you out so that you can impress her!"

Sasuke turned red when he saw Neji smirking at him.

"Now, wait just a minute Neji!"

"Like I said, go ahead and play." And he left as Sasuke cursed and turned to the kid who made his life miserable with each encounter they had.

But in any case, he appreciated the help this kid gave him, and he was a bit disturbed at how a carpenter from the marketplace had asked him for a name for a bar in exchange for wood, telling him the details like how a young woman would be tending it with a killer figure, long legs and a huge bosom. And while Sasuke may have turned red, he had tried to get rid of the image from his head and listened further to what the guy had to say after he came up with a name of "Seventh Heaven" – which the carpenter liked. Although, Sasuke raised a brow and turned serious when the man told him how there would be an underground base for anti-Shinra forces. He ended up seeing the man turn pale after informing him that he was working for Shinra, and a SOLDIER at that, but in exchange for the wood, he let the man off with a warning.

Anyway, in record time, he and Konohamaru were able to gather the materials needed, and the boy decided that it was time for him to leave.

"You're not coming along?" he asked.

"Yeah right!" He grinned toothily at Sasuke. "I know better than that! You go on ahead and have fun with Sakura-nechan!"

He twitched. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know perfectly well what I mean!" he said in a sing-song voice before running off when Sasuke had made a scowl and attempted to scold him again. "See 'ya around then nii-chan!"

Sighing, he just smirked and shook his head; the kid was annoying, yet amusing at the same time. _"I better get going." _He thought, heading back to the church.

* * *

She smiled when she heard him approaching. "Back already?"

"I had some help with Konohamaru."

She giggled. "Looks like you two are friends now."

"Hn." He sat down onto the floor for a moment as Sakura eyed the materials. "Anyway, I'm not a carpenter, but I'll do what I can to make your flower wagon."

She gave a nod and a smile, and he began to work.

As time passed, she eyed how far Sasuke has gone.

"It's looking really good, the materials are matching perfectly!"

He finished the whole thing and wiped the sweat away from his forehead with the use of his arm. "Phew. Done."

"Hmm…" She eyed it. "Not quite… what I expected." She said, crossing her arms.

"Really?" he raised a brow, eyeing the wagon. "I think it's okay, it's all about the flowers anyway."

"I want…" She turned to him. "A nicer one."

He saw the look on her face, and he would have laughed at how demanding she was, but he was pretty tired from chasing Fugaku in Junon, running around Sector 5 to gather the materials, and even building the wagon.

"Stop being so picky…" he said, a bit exasperated.

"A tiny little wish," she said, turning her back to him with her hands behind her. "That's all."

He managed to sigh and smile slightly. She was being cute again.

"They're tiny," he murmured. "But you have a lot, right?"

"That's right!" She turned abruptly to face him, grinning. "Wanna hear?"

"Heh, how many have you got?"

"Hmm…" she began counting. "Twenty… three..?"

He almost fell down at that, but he managed to give a tired grin. "Write them down," he said, placing his index and middle finger to the side of his head, before making a motion as if something flew off. "So I won't forget."

His phone rang while Sakura was busy writing her wishes down on a piece of paper.

"Sasuke here." He said to his phone.

"There are new developments," Madara spoke. "Headquarters, now." And he hung up, with Sasuke sighing and feeling annoyed that he had to leave again.

"Work stuff?" he heard Sakura ask, trying her best to keep the smile on her face.

"Sadly…"

She handed a folded piece of paper to him. "Here."

He took it, smiled at her and gave a nod, and she smiled back.

* * *

"Legions of monsters have spawned near a regional mako reactor. The workers have all gone missing. Local SOLDIER operatives have also vanished." Madara began. "The company is dispatching additional operatives to investigate the matter. You and I, that is."

Sasuke did not make eye contact with Madara for the whole meeting and just kept his arms crossed and head lowered. "Roger that." He said, though his tone had a hint of annoyance.

"What's wrong?" Madara asked.

"Well you know, I thought you found something about that other matter."

"The missing operatives were the ones tracking Kakashi." Madara explained further. "Also, they have reported a strange pod-like device in the area."

"Is that… Fugaku's?"

"Probably the same device that was stolen in Modeoheim, meaning Fugaku, Kakashi, and Gaara…" He murmured. "We'll have to go see them."

"Aa. Let's go."

"First," Madara said. "Go to the SOLDIER floor, we'll depart as soon as you and the rest of the men are ready to go."

"Understood." He made a move to leave, but Madara talked again. "Our orders are to investigate the reactor, they mention nothing of old friends."

Sasuke slowly turned to look at Madara, seeing a forlorn expression.

"Depending on what happens, I may abandon Shinra." Sasuke did not say anything, understanding Madara's situation, so the older SOLDIER continued. "Until then, I'll remain loyal to SOLDIER."

* * *

Sasuke stood and leaned his back against the wall, growing tired of waiting for the assigned men to go with him and Madara.

"_Nobody seems to be coming."_

"Oh hey Sasuke, I heard you were going on a new assignment with Madara."

He turned to see Shikamaru walking towards him.

"I also received new orders to inspect the mako reactor at Fort Condor, looks like we won't be seeing each other for a while."

"Yeah," Sasuke lowered his head at the idea of being away for too long. "I guess this is goodbye."

Shikamaru blinked. Even if Sasuke had told him how he would no longer be the same puppy he used to, he was still not used to Sasuke being so serious and less enthusiastic.

"Why the long face, are you that sad to see me go?"

"I'm sad because…" he raised his head to the ceiling, eyes half-closed. "I have to be away from Sakura…"

"Heh." Shikamaru managed a lazy smirk. "You're in love."

Sasuke looked at him with wide eyes for a moment, before softening his gaze and looking at the floor. "Am I..?"

"It would explain your lack of enthusiasm to go on another mission, not to mention how you never showed any interest in girls, until you met Sakura."

"Yeah," He managed a small smile and looked away. "Maybe… I am in love with her."

"So," Shikamaru pocketed his hands. "Are you just going to stand here and wait until it's time to go?" Sasuke raised his head to meet Shikamaru's eyes. "You still have time right? And who knows when you'll be back, so, go and see her. I'll explain everything to Madara in case he arrives, I'm sure he'll understand, seeing how he's taken a soft spot for you – heh, I guess that's how you win everyone's approval and… dare I say, friendship and affection."

"Aa." Sasuke smiled slightly. "Thanks Shikamaru." And he soon rushed off, missing how Shikamaru chuckled and mutter a troublesome.

* * *

She blinked after hearing the doors of the church open, and she turned, afterwards, smiled brightly when she spotted Sasuke heading towards her.

"Done with work already?"

He looked down, and her smile faded.

"Actually… I was given an important assignment, and I have to leave Midgar for a while."

"…When will… you be back?"

His heart clenched at her tone, and somehow, he didn't want to leave at all.

"…Sasuke?"

"I don't know." He looked away. "I wish I knew…"

She lowered her head. "Can I call you?"

He looked at her, seeing how she dared to raise her head to eye him, and he smiled. "Anytime you want." And he was relieved to see her lips curve upwards. "And don't worry, the job will be a cinch, I'll be back in no time."

"Hey," She called, grinning. "Let's start now."

He raised a brow. "Start what?"

"Filling the slums with flowers!"

He couldn't say no to that, and he wanted to be with her until the last minute, so he gave a nod, and they proceeded to the park.

"Do you think we'll be able to sell a lot?" she asked.

"Yeah, it may be rough from the start, but we'll manage."

She smiled, but as the minutes ticked by, she began to frown. "No one's… coming…"

Sasuke wasn't one to be overly positive, but he didn't like seeing her frown.

"Sasuke..! A customer!"

He turned to see a man enter the park, and he dashed over to the man.

"Hey, mister," he called, causing the man to turn to him. "You want to buy some flowers? Only 10 gil a pop."

Sakura watched as he interacted with the man, said a few things to coax him into buying, and she couldn't help but laugh.

Sasuke went back to her. "He said he'd buy if you'd agree to 5 gil."

"Sure," She shrugged. "Any price is fine."

He shook his head and had his thumb and index finger hold his chin in thought. "That won't do, I'll try for seven."

"But…" he looked at her, seeing her give an amused smile. "He's gone."

He was taken aback to see no sign of the man, and he twitched, trying to calm down, and ended up sighing and lowering his head. "Sorry…"

"Hm?" She smiled. "What are you sorry about? I'm having a wonderful time!" she said cheerily. "It doesn't matter if we sell or not," she looked down, cheeks turning slightly pink as she smiled. "As long as you're here… with me…" her voice weakened, but he managed to hear the words she said. "…it's fine." She finished, avoiding his gaze, since he had looked at her in shock. "Hey, another customer!" she said, seeing a kid enter the park, so she ran towards the child, and Sasuke continued looking at her, watching how she talked animatedly to the boy, and then to two more kids who just came in.

_You're in love with her._

He recalled Shikamaru's words… and yeah, perhaps he is in love with her.

"_Now's not the time though," _he thought. _"But… someday, when I'm not leaving for a mission, I'll tell her." _He blinked and turned to his left, seeing Neji leaning against the toy house of the park, hidden from view, but Sasuke was sure that the Turk purposely let himself be seen by him, so he approached the long-haired man while Sakura was still tending to the children, since more had arrived.

"Neji," he greeted, lowering his head and glancing slightly at Sakura. "I have another mission, and it might take longer than usual."

The Turk eyed his expression, and then looked at where Sakura was. "But you told her you'd be back soon, correct?"

"Aa." He answered, brows furrowing a bit. "Lying is the last thing I want to do to her, but I didn't want to see her sad…"

Neji smirked. "Don't worry about Sakura."

"I can't help it," Sasuke said. "Not with clones appearing."

"Protecting her…" Neji began. "Is part of surveillance duty…"

Sasuke looked down for a moment, and then eyed Neji. "You're the only one I can depend on." And he turned to Sakura, his expression changing from seriousness, to sorrow.

Neji took note of the way the SOLDIER looked at the pink-haired girl, and he couldn't help but laugh, which startled Sasuke, causing the Alpha Wolf to blush and glare at Neji.

"Hey! Why are you laughing?!"

He coughed, trying to regain his composure. "The look you just had," He said. "Priceless."

Sasuke twitched, and then turned back to Sakura. "I'm counting on you." He told him, and then walked back to Sakura when she was done.

"Hey! Look! I sold a lot already!"

He smiled slightly, and then dared to place a hand on her cheek to push some strands of her hair away.

"Hm?" she tried hard not to blush.

"I have to go." He told her in a soft voice, and her smile slowly disappeared as she looked down. "As soon as I get back, I'll head straight here."

She turned to the wagon, and rummaged inside the small bag she placed there, where she would keep her money.

"Sakura?"

She turned back to him, holding onto something in her hands, before looking back up at him. "Keep this with you, okay?" she pressed an object onto his hands, and he held it, eyeing the small keychain that looked like her. "So that… you won't forget me."

He smiled a bit, seeing another keychain on her hands, one that looked like him.

"There is no way I'll forget about you Sakura."

And she wasn't expecting him to kiss her forehead lightly.

"Wait for me." He murmured, instead of saying goodbye.

She smiled, and he returned it, before he left, and she never took her eyes off of him, even when he disappeared from her view.

* * *

He yawned, standing upright when he heard the elevator alert that someone was about to come out of it, and he spotted Sasuke walking towards him, smirking at the keychain attached at the end of the Buster sword's handle.

"Cute." He commented.

"Shut up." Sasuke murmured, turning red and looking away.

"So, told her yet?"

He shook his head.

"Aw. Why?"

"Shikamaru," Sasuke began. "Telling her my feelings when I'm about to leave isn't exactly a good idea."

"True," he shrugged. "Then, what did you tell her?"

"To wait for me."

"Good enough," Shikamaru chuckled. "So, are you just going to wait here? It looks like Madara won't be here for a while."

"Yeah, I'm okay, thanks." He smiled slightly. "Know what, let's finish our respective assignments quickly and meet back up here."

"Oh?" Shikamaru raised a brow. "Now, why is that?"

"I owe you a lot now."

"Alright, looking forward to it." He raised a hand. "Until then."

And they parted ways.

Sasuke walked towards the SOLDIER floor, where the lounge area was, and he spotted a single Infantryman standing by without his helmet, and he wondered why there was still only one present.

"What's up?" he asked, making the Infantryman jump a little.

"I'm having a little trouble rounding up the group."

He approached the man. "We're in a hurry, let's move it."

"Sir!"

Sasuke stopped when he was close enough to see who the Infantryman was.

"Wha-?! Naruto?!" He soon broke into a grin, and so did that blonde when he recognized who would be assisting Madara. "Together again eh?" he joked, laughing with the blonde as they knocked each other's fist.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed, much more excited this time. "Hold on, I'll get everyone!" and he left to gather the remaining members of the group, now pumped up to do his best.

A little later, Naruto had gotten the other two men who would be going with them, and Sasuke eyed how they all stood in one row while he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, smirking at them.

They soon stood at attention, and Sasuke looked to the side, spotting Madara walking over to them, so he pushed himself off of the wall and followed the higher-ranking SOLDIER.

"By the way," He caught Madara's attention. "Where are we going?"

Madara turned to face Sasuke. "Nibelheim."

Missing how Naruto's eyes widened, and he had turned his head to the older SOLDIER in shock.

* * *

"So," Madara began upon arriving at the entrance of Nibelheim. "How does it feel?" he asked Naruto, who stood to his right, a bit far back. "To be home after all this time?" he glanced back up front. "I have no hometown, so I wouldn't know."

Sasuke raised a brow and walked a bit further. "Uh… what about family?"

"My mother's name…" Madara turned to face Sasuke. "Is Jenova, she dies shortly after I was born." He looked down. "My father…" he trailed off, and then laughed, causing Sasuke to raise a brow, while the other three Infantryman took a step back. "Why am I talking about this?" Madara muttered, composing himself. "Come on, let's go." And he led the way inside, the three remaining men following suit, leaving Sasuke behind, since he eyed Madara a bit longer and crossed his arms. "His mother's name… is Jenova?" he thought about it for a while. "Huh…" he sighed and shrugged, running in to catch up with the group, stopping when he heard a girl's voice.

"Are you one of the SOLDIER people who've come to investigate?"

Sasuke turned to his right, seeing a girl with long dark hair and pale lavender eyes; she was about as tall as Sakura, or shorter.

"_Sakura…" _he thought, clenching his fists before shaking his head a bit and approached the girl. "Yeah, I'm Uchiha Sasuke, and I'm with SOLDIER."

She gave a nod and smiled a bit. "Are there a lot of SOLDIER 1st classes?"

He blinked and raised a brow. So the girl knew more than she looked.

"No, there are only a handful of us."

"They only sent two?"

Sasuke gave a nod, glancing at Madara. "That over there is Madara, I'm pretty sure you've heard about him."

"Well, who hasn't heard of the hero?"

"A few," Sasuke shrugged. "You'd be surprised that not everyone knows him." He recalled Sakura once again.

"I see…" she turned around, and then looked back, opening her mouth to ask something, but ended up closing it and shaking her head, before running off.

"_Weird girl…" _Sasuke thought, sighing and walking over to Madara.

"We depart for the reactor at dawn, so get plenty of sleep."

Sasuke gave Madara a look, and the older SOLDIER just shook his head a laughed a bit.

"You're on a mission, try not to think of her too much." And then he turned to the three men. "Only one has to keep watch, so take turns and try to get as much sleep as you can." He was about to enter the inn, but remembered Naruto being a resident here, so he turned to look at the blonde. "You have permission to visit family and friends, if you wish."

Sasuke glanced at Naruto. "What's with the helmet?"

He coughed. "It makes me look… professional."

"Hn, think I'd buy that?"

"…"

"Fine," He sighed. "I won't force you to answer." He turned to his surroundings, seeing a little boy looking bored, so he went towards him, and he soon perked up. "..?"

"Hey! Nii-chan! You want to know something scary?"

"…I guess."

"Good! Well, guess what? Nibelheim has seven wonders, and you know what the first one is?"

"…No."

"The water source of this place is red! I think it's blood!" he shuddered. "Scary huh?"

Sasuke raised a brow and eyed the water tank in the middle of the area. "Has no one checked on it?"

"No one dares to!" he grinned toothily. "Say, you're SOLDIER, why don't you check it out?"

"Hn. I've got nothing better to do." He murmured, climbing up the ladder that led to the water source, and to his surprise, the water was red, but for a good reason. "Heh." He smirked and picked up the glowing red materia, eyeing the object before getting back down to show it to the boy. "Here's the reason why your water turns red."

"Aww… And to think it was true!" The boy pouted. "Oh well, at least you have a new materia."

"Not just any materia," Sasuke said, eyeing the orb. "It's a summoning one," he smirked. "The last one that I needed; Phoenix."

Somehow, he sort of regretted having to talk to that boy, since the kid wouldn't let him leave without hearing the remaining six wonders.

Sasuke would have probably volunteered to solve all the mysteries, but he was tired, and he needed some rest. So, he left the kid and went inside the inn, climbed up the stairs and spotted Madara staring outside the window.

"What are you… looking at?"

Madara looked at Sasuke, then back at the view. "This landscape…" he said. "I could swear I've seen it before…"

Silence engulfed them afterwards, and Madara shook his head and checked the time.

"Sorry to say, but there's no time to lose, we need to get going."

Sasuke sighed and followed the older SOLDIER, deciding that sleep would have to wait a little later.

"Where are the others?"

"Outside." Sasuke answered, and he and Madara soon led the three men towards Shinra manor, where a photographer stood, and Sasuke saw the girl from earlier standing by.

"Hello again." She said, smiling. "I haven't introduced myself yet," She bowed down a bit. "My name's Hinata."

"Let me guess, you're our guide?"

She nodded at Sasuke. "At your service."

"Okay!" said the photographer. "Say cheese!"

Hinata blushed while Madara turned elsewhere. Sasuke blinked and raised a brow, wondering if this was a requirement.

He just stood still like Madara, while Hinata smiled a bit as the photographer took a picture.

"Nobody is a better guide than me in this town." Hinata began, as she led the way up the mountains.

"It's too dangerous." Sasuke said. "We can't get you involved in something like this."

"She'll be fine." Madara muttered, following the girl, looking up when a giant, long-beaked bird had flown down, about to attack. "If you protect her." And as soon as he finished saying it, the bird was knocked out, and he smirked at Sasuke who stood before the creature, clicking his tongue in annoyance. _"If you could see him now, Itachi…"_

Naruto, still wearing the helmet, approached the fallen bird, checking to see if it was dead.

"Stay back." Sasuke told him. "It's just knocked out, it'll wake up later and start attacking." He glanced at the sword in his hands. "Use brings about wear, tear, and rust…" he murmured, remembering Itachi's words, yet again. "So…" he smiled slightly, and Madara didn't miss it. "I usually hit with the blunt side."

Hinata continued leading the way, until they reached the excavation site.

"We're here." She said, looking at Madara who climbed up the long steps. She then turned to Sasuke. "I want to go inside and look too." She told him, looking down.

"This is a top secret facility," Madara said, hearing her words. "Non-Shinra personnel are not permitted inside."

Sasuke gave an apologetic look to Hinata, before following Madara, who then turned to the three Infantrymen with them, particularly to Naruto.

"Keep the young lady safe."

The three men nodded, and then blocked the path that led inside the facility as soon as Sasuke had followed Madara.

When inside, Sasuke continued climbing up the steps, ignoring the pod-like devices that were on his right and left; he reached the sealed door and read what was written above it.

"JENOVA…" he murmured. "Interesting," he eyed the door. "Sealed, of course…" he turned his back to it, since there was no use checking it out, but he soon stopped upon realization hitting him. "Jenova..?!" he turned to the name to confirm it, and then at Madara, who was climbing down the stairs and heading towards a pod.

"This is the cause of the malfunction." He began. "This section is broken." He turned to Sasuke who was also climbing down the stairs. "Sasuke, go seal the valve," the teen gave a nod and walked pass Madara to do what he was told. "Why did it break?" the older man asked himself, eyeing the pod.

After sealing the valve, he went back to where Madara was, who stepped back to let him see what was inside the pod.

Sasuke eyed the older man for a moment, before checking out what was in the pod, and he was taken aback to see a monster inside. "Wha…what is that?!"

"You average SOLDIER members are mako-infused humans." He told Sasuke. "You're enhanced, but you're still human." Sasuke eyed Madara, who looked at the pod. "But then, what are those things?" Sasuke turned back to the monster. "Their mako energy levels are exponentially higher than yours." He told the teen.

"Are they…" he tried to look for a better term, but ended up failing. "Monsters..?"

Madara walked away, and Sasuke followed a bit, stopping a few feet away from him. "Yes." He answered. "Hojo was the one who created them," he looked at Sasuke. "Abominations spawned by mako energy, that's what monsters are."

Sasuke furrowed his brows. "You said average member," he commented. "What about you?"

He was silent for a while, unsure how to answer the question, until his head began to ache, and he felt his knees begin to weaken.

"Hey, Madara!" he called out, trying to assist the SOLDIER, but was pushed back.

"Could it be…" Madara shook, eyeing his hands. "That I was… created the same way..?" his eyes widened. "Am I the same as these monsters..?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and ran towards him.

"I knew…" Madara began, making the teen stop. "Ever since I was a child, I was not like the others; I knew mine was a special existence. But this…" he shook. "This was not what I meant!" he eyed his hands again, scared and angered. "Am I… a human being?!"

"No such luck."

Madara and Sasuke looked up to see Gaara.

"You are a monster." Gaara said, and without warning, shot a Fira towards Sasuke, who failed to block it and was forced back to the ground. "Madara," he began. "You were the greatest monster created by the Jenova project."

"Gaara…" Sasuke seethed, sitting up, making Gaara turn to him to smirk. "So you are alive…"

"I suppose I am." The red head said. "If you can call this living…"

"What is the Jenova project?" Madara asked.

"A term used for all the experiments, relating to the use of Jenova cells."

Madara frowned. "My mother's cells?"

"Heh. Poor Madara," Gaara said. "You've never actually met your mother, have you? You've only been told her name." he sat down on one of the steps. "I don't know what images you've conjured up in your head, but…"

Sasuke's eyes widened, already getting and piecing together what's about to be said, and what's about to happen.

"Gaara…" he clutched his stomach and tried to get up. "Gaara, no!" he warned.

"Jenova…" The red-haired continued, ignoring Sasuke. "…Was excavated from a two thousand year old rock layer, she's a monster."

The hero SOLDIER's eyes widened, and he took a few steps back in disbelief, head lowering to the side, refusing to just accept everything.

"Madara…" Gaara began yet again. "I need your help. My body is continuing to degrade." He got up and walked down the steps, watching how Madara had stiffened. "Jenova project G gave birth to Itachi, and monsters like myself…" He smirked. "Jenova project S…"

"…S?" Sasuke echoed, listening intently as he slowly got up.

"…Used the remains of countless failed experiments to create the perfect monster…"

Madara shook his head. "What do you want of me?"

"Your traits cannot be copied unto others. Your genes can't be diffused, therefore, your body cannot degrade." Gaara walked over to him. "Share your cells with me…" He said, and recited another line from LOVELESS. "My friend, your desire is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess…" and he held out a Dumb Apple to him.

Madara eyed the apple, and then the sealed door which led to Jenova.

"Whether your words are lies created to deceive me…" Madara slowly looked at Gaara. "Or the truth that I have sought all my life," he raised his hand. "…It makes no difference." He slapped the apple away, causing it to fall to the floor. "You will rot." And he left, Gaara narrowing his eyes, but closing them to calm down.

"I see…" The red head said. "Perfect monster indeed…" he walked around. "When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end, the goddess descends from the sky." He looked up. "Wings of light and dark spread afar, she guides us to bliss… her gift everlasting." He walked to the exit, and Sasuke cursed and took put his Curaga materia to heal himself, before running after the two. "No, stop!"

He ran after them, and as the door opened, he saw the two Infantryman laying motionless on the floor, and then at Naruto who stood his ground, shooting at the huge Gaara clone which held onto a death scythe.

It shot a fire attack on Naruto, who was thrown back by the force and weakened. Hinata raised her fists, preparing herself for battle.

"Tch. Damn it." Sasuke drew out his sword and ran towards the battle field, using the Jump materia so that he could get himself an extra boost, and then stab the sword on the ground between the monster and Hinata, forcing the creature back from the impact his attack made. "Hinata, get to safety!"

She nodded and assisted Naruto as they made their way out of harm's way.

While his head was turned to them, the creature made a Whirlwind attack, causing Sasuke to be blown away and land back on the ground with a hard thud, giving him critical damage. _"Damn it!" _he cursed, forcing himself to get back up. _"I can't give up…" _he thought, seeing the Sakura keychain attached to the handle of his sword.

He closed his eyes, and stabbed his sword on the ground, hands gripping onto the handle as he felt himself being healed, before looking directly at the creature and giving out a battle cry, afterwards, jumped in the air and brought down the Buster sword as hard as he could, slicing the monster in half which ended the battle.

Sasuke rushed to Hinata who had placed Naruto down on the ground to tend to some of his wounds first.

"Hinata!" he called out, stopping before the two and kneeling down on one knee.

"He…" She eyed Naruto, and then Sasuke. "Tried to protect me…"

"I know." Sasuke looked at Naruto and then back at the girl. "Look, stay close alright? I need to get you two to safety."

She gave a nod, and she helped Naruto up as Sasuke cleared the path, making sure no monsters would attack.

* * *

They finally reached Nibelheim, and Sasuke looked around in hopes of searching Madara.

"Where did he go..?"

"Is something wrong?" Hinata asked after setting Naruto down on the ground.

Sasuke looked at her for a while, deciding not to drag Hinata further into this mess.

"Sorry, I can't tell you."

"I'm not surprised." She said, walking pass him. "I'll ask around town for Madara's whereabouts."

"Thanks Hinata." He told her, as she nodded and left, leaving Sasuke to look at Naruto who was struggling to get back on his feet. Sasuke sighed and shook his head, smiling slightly when the blonde had fallen back. _"He'll need a lot of rest after what he did earlier…" _he walked over to Naruto and brought him in the inn, making him lie down to get some rest.

* * *

Sasuke looked at Naruto when he grunted and sat up, clutching onto his head, before turning to look at the raven haired SOLDIER.

"Hinata's safe, don't worry."

He gave a nod, but frowned and lowered his head. "If only I were SOLDIER…" he turned to see Sasuke suddenly look away, and he could tell that something was wrong. "Sasuke?"

"SOLDIER is like a den of monsters." He told Naruto. "Don't go inside."

"What happened?"

He was silent for a while, before replying. "I don't know…" he leaned back and lifted a leg up on the bed. "I thought I knew… but…" he sighed and laid down on the bed, arms folded behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. "By the way," he glanced at Naruto. "Do you know Hinata?"

"Sort of…" He replied, looking away, a bit embarrassed all of a sudden.

"Talked to her?"

"No…"

Sasuke sat up. "I'm sensing some issues here… shouldn't you do something?" Naruto just hung his head, and Sasuke smiled sadly and looked down. "Hn. I'm one to talk…" he glanced to the side, the smile not leaving his lips as he recalled Sakura. He got up when he caught sight of the Buster sword that was leaning against the table in the room. "I'm with SOLDIER… so fighting's all I do." He walked closer to the weapon. "Sorting things out… is someone else's job." He reached the sword. "What's going on… who's the enemy…" he narrowed his eyes all of a sudden and picked up the sword, as if about to slash at something. "It makes no difference to me!" he cried out, startling Naruto.

The SOLDIER stopped himself and sighed, eyeing the sword in his hand, and he gave a mixed look of sorrow and anger. "Aniki… I need you right now, but… you're no longer here… You left me… alone…" he whispered, staring at the blade.

"Hey Sasuke," Naruto began. "You know, I've never actually seen you use that… the way you used to handle your old sword I mean."

He glanced at Naruto, and then at the sword.

"_Use brings about wear, tear, and rust. And that's a real waste." _

Aniki…

"_You're a little more important than my sword." He turned to him and smirked, raising his thumb and index finger as a gesture about how big a deal or small Sasuke's life was. "But just a little." He moved and offered a hand to his "little brother". Sasuke blinked before giving a small smile, which Itachi returned with one of his rare ones._

And he recalled what he told the troops on the day he decided to take his role seriously.

"_Embrace your dreams…" he said, lowering the sword to his side. "And… whatever happens, protect your SOLDIER honor."_

"This…" He began, making Naruto look up all of a sudden. "Is a symbol of my dreams and honor…" he stopped himself. "No, it's more." His eyes widened for a moment, and he snorted. "That's right, I had almost forgotten." He glanced at Naruto. "Thanks."

"…Huh?" he blinked, confused.

Sasuke placed the sword back against the table, and his eyes caught sight of the keychain hanging from the handle, the small version of Sakura looking innocent.

"_Sakura…"_ he thought.

"_It's alright…" She said, closing her eyes and hugging him tighter. "Itachi…" she murmured. "Is watching over you, he'll never leave you… he's with you, in spirit." She ignored the tears that fell from her own eyes. "I'm here," she added. "You're not alone Sasuke, I'm here… I'll be here…"_

_Itachi's with you in spirit…_

_You're not alone…_

_I'm here…_

_I'll be here…_

_You're not alone…_

"Right." He said, smiling, before proceeding to his own bed. "I'm gonna crash." He plopped onto the bed. "Night."

Naruto stared at him, then at the sword, and then back at Sasuke. "HUH?!"

* * *

He awoke a few hours later, and then gout out of bed and strapped his sword behind him. He turned to Naruto, who yawned.

"Ngh… five more minutes…"

Sasuke just smirked and shook his head, deciding to let Naruto rest some more and head out to see if there's any news on Madara.

As soon as he reached the ground floor, Hinata came running in to tell him of the older SOLDIER's whereabouts.

"Hinata..?"

"Madara is apparently at Shinra manor."

"That big mansion..?"

She nodded once. "Shinra has owned it for a long time."

"Alright, thanks."

"…Hey, what happened to that guy?"

Sasuke blinked, realizing soon that she was asking about Naruto. "He's fine, just needs some rest."

She nodded once, and then bowed down before leaving.

The teenaged SOLDIER soon left the inn, set on finding Madara.

Before he could get pass the water source of the town, his phone rang, and he was startled that there was actually signal up here.

"Huh..?" he pulled it out from his pocket and answered it. "Sasuke here."

"Hell-llooo!"

He recognized that voice, as well as that "hello"

"Sakura?!" he exclaimed, his serious expression turning to that of excitement.

"I finally got through!" she said happily, and he smiled.

"Yeah…" he said softly, pulling the phone from his ear and eyeing her picture on the phone's screen which indicated that she was the caller. He then remembered where he was and what was going on, so he looked around, before placing the phone back against his ear. "Uh… listen…" he said, ignoring how his heart clenched at the idea of having to cut their conversation short, especially after not seeing her or hearing her voice for so long. "Now's not the best time…" he was sure she knew how he was currently feeling. "I'll call you later."

"No, no," She said, trying to still sound cheerful, but he picked up the sadness in her voice. "You don't have to."

And he felt bad.

"Sakura… I…" he stopped, reminding himself that he would say it in person.

"Hm?"

He smiled. "I'll come visit."

"I'll be here."

Those words… it reminded him that he wasn't alone.

"I'll see you." He told her. "I promise."

"Mm. See you."

And they reluctantly hung up.

Sasuke eyed his phone a bit longer, before keeping it in his pocket. _"Sakura…" _he shut his eyes, and then opened them when he raised his head to the sky. _"Wait for me a little while longer…"_

He found Madara inside Shinra manor, so he walked inside, seeing a lot of books opened, some papers scattered on the floor, and the older SOLDIER pacing around, flipping through pages after pages of the book he held.

"A life form in the state of suspended animation…" He heard Madara speak. "Excavated from a two thousand year old stratum…"

Sasuke continued to walk further in, stopping when he was near Madara who still paced, not acknowledging his presence.

"…named the life form Jenova…

"My mother's name… Jenova…

"The Jenova project…"

Sasuke eyed the SOLDIER, unsure what to feel for him, but he knew that Madara was obsessed with his research after what Gaara had revealed a few hours ago.

"…Why didn't you tell me..?"

He didn't hear the name of the professor that Madara uttered.

"Why did you die..?"

And he felt the need to walk over to him, and perhaps attempt to comfort him.

"Sasuke…" he stopped in his tracks to see Madara lower his head. "I… would like to be alone."

The younger SOLDIER stood there for a moment, before looking down, and then back up to give a nod, afterwards, turning his back to Madara and walk out of the room.

He had no idea that after that day, Madara would shut himself inside the manor, reviewing document after document, not stopping at all to take a break.

It was alright, because it was understandable, but after seven days, things took a turn for the worst.

Sasuke had woke up to the sudden change of temperature – it wasn't cold any longer, but instead, it grew too hot, and he could hear the villagers outside screaming.

He instantly sprang onto his feet and grabbed his weapon, rushing outside the inn to see Nibelheim on fire.

"What the…" he turned to the area which led to the excavation site.

"I'm coming to get you…" he turned to the voice, and from behind the fire wall, he saw Madara's head lowered, before slowly raising it to eye him, and Sasuke noted the different glint in his eyes, and how he suddenly gave an evil smirk, before turning his back to him to leave.

Sasuke stood there, frozen from shock, and he turned back to the burning village, seeing the people rushing out of their houses, attempting to put out the fire.

"_Madara…" _He clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and lowered his head. "How could you..?" he abruptly turned and ran after Madara, sword ready for battle as he got rid of the monsters that blocked his path. "Madara..!" he yelled, eyes glaring hard as he ran pass the fallen monsters he killed. Normally, he would only knock them out, but he was in pure rage, and he could care less right now about the creatures. "How could you?! How could you do this Madara?!" he reached the excavation site and busted in after slicing through the door.

He panted, breathing hard, and then he spotted Hinata on the floor, lying down, looking badly hurt.

"Hinata…" he rushed towards her, sliding down on one knee to check if she was okay. "Hinata..!" he called out, and she slowly opened her eyes, seeing Sasuke frown. "Madara… he did this… didn't he?"

He took note of the tears in her eyes and how frightened and angry she was.

"Hinata… I…" she turned her back to him, and began to sob. "I hate you…" she said. "I hate Shinra… I hate SOLDIER…" she hiccupped. "I hate you all!"

His brows furrowed, and he looked away, and then at the sealed valve where Jenova was.

"Madara…" he seethed, getting up and climbing up the stairs that led to Jenova, and he brought out his sword once more. "MADARA!!" he broke through the door with the use of his sword, rushing towards Madara.

He spotted him standing before a hydro capsule where he assumed Jenova was probably contained.

"Mother…"

He heard the ex-SOLDIER say.

"Let's take back the planet together," he continued. "I had an epiphany."

He couldn't believe that he trusted this guy, trusted this hero, trusted this man named Madara.

"Let's go to the promised land, mother." He tore off the lifeless android that blocked his view of Jenova, letting it drop to the floor as a woman with blue skin stared back at him, looking alive, but obviously not. "We meet at last… mother…"

Sasuke walked briskly to Madara and had the sharp side of the Buster sword near Madara's throat from the side.

"Madara," He addressed, eyes narrowing. "Have you completely lost your mind?!"

The older of the two was silent for a moment, and without warning, he pivoted and slashed his sword against Sasuke, who immediately blocked with the use of the Buster sword, but the force of Madara's attacked made him slid down the metallic tube that they were both standing on.

"I trusted you!" Sasuke cried out, jumping in the air while raising the Buster sword, about to bring it down to Madara, who blocked effortlessly and forced him aside.

He fell, head first, realizing only now that the room where Jenova's hydro capsule stood was held had no solid ground. He opened his eyes to see Madara jump down and used a single "Octaslash" at him, causing a wave of bright light headed towards him, and he used the Buster sword to block it, and it only made him fall faster.

Getting back to his senses, he glanced down and saw the glass floor below, so he twisted his body so that he could land perfectly on his own two feet.

He checked his surroundings, seeing how the area gave him little movement, but it was big enough to actually have a battle in. He looked down on the floor he stood on, seeing what was supporting the glass floor. It was metal, no doubt, and it was about five-feet wide and more than forty feet long.

He followed it, seeing where it ended, and he knew why there was a glass floor over it, so that no one could fall off to meet a fatal death.

Sasuke turned around to see Madara land gracefully on the floor, and then raise his head to meet his gaze, afterwards, the evil smirk was on his lips.

"_Tch. This is going to be tougher." _He thought, as he prepared himself to battle against the much more experienced SOLDIER.

He used a couple of Hell Firaga on Madara, but the older SOLDIER had more tricks up his sleeves, apparently, since he seemed to disappear in smoke twice in a row to evade the attack, and he reappeared in front of Sasuke, who then slashed as fast as he could to counter Madara's defense, but the man was too fast for him, and used Octaslash against him as he pointed his long sword at Sasuke.

"Traitor." He said with hatred, slashing his sword which Sasuke managed to evade. They jumped in the air, having a sword dance. "You will pay!" And Madara forced Sasuke back down with one strong slash.

He hit the ground, and he grunted from the pain before sitting back up and rolling away when Madara had attempted to cut his head off.

"You're the traitor!" He told him, and delivered eight slashes of his sword non-stop, causing Madara to take a few steps back, glare, and then pivoted to deliver a powerful attack.

Sasuke fell back, but he got back up, only to fall down on one knee as he panted.

"Humans…" Madara said with narrowed orbs. "I will not be defeated by humans…"

"No…" Sasuke said breathlessly as he got up, fighting the urge to give in. "You're not… You're not the Madara I once knew!" he pointed the Buster sword at Madara and glared.

"I am the chosen one, I have been chosen to rule this planet." He smirked and stabbed the glass floor, forcing a surge of mako energy to head directly to Sasuke, who blocked it with the Buster sword.

The force caused the glass floor to break, leaving Sasuke left standing on the metal that once supported the floor.

Sasuke saw the smirk Madara had, and he looked behind him to see what Madara was planning – Madara was going to force him off the edge.

"_Shit."_

_**To be continued…

* * *

**_

_Next on Crisis Core: Chapter 6: Wings of Freedom_

"You call yourself SOLDIER?"

"_That voice…" _his vision was dark, and white celestial feathers floated around him. _"…Aniki?"_

"You tarnish the SOLDIER name."

His eyesight cleared, and his eyes widened when he saw Itachi standing there, holding onto the Buster sword.

"Aniki..?!" he was about to run after Itachi when he turned his back to him. "Aniki!" he yelled. He was about to reach out, but glass prevented him, and he realized that he was in a laboratory, inside a hydro capsule, and that Itachi was flying away. "Itachi! Wait!" he hit the glass, punched it repeatedly, and bubbles began to rose and form, blocking his vision due to his thrashing about.

He found himself standing on shallow water, and then looked up at the blinding clear blue sky, and he flinched, before seeing a single white feather flow down freely, and his gaze followed it, until it landed on the surface of the water, making a light ripple.

Sasuke raised his head to the sky with a look of longing. "Those wings…" he said softly. "I want them too…" and the cracking of glass was heard.


	6. Wings of Freedom

**Crisis Core (revised)  
**_**Chapter 6: Wings of Freedom  
**__Honor is Pride… Pride is Honor…

* * *

_

Madara slowly made his way towards Sasuke, a sinister smirk on his lips.

Sasuke had no other choice than to rush head on and attack, otherwise, he may as well let the older SOLDIER push him off the edge.

"Draw Slash." Madara said, giving two quick slashes at the younger boy before him.

Sasuke blocked the first two ones, but couldn't stand his ground on the third one, since the force of the attack was too strong that it sent him flying backwards.

He looked behind him to see that he was halfway towards the end of the floor he stood on, and he bit back and curse.

Everything was falling into pieces – Gaara's ploy, Itachi's death, and now, Madara's betrayal.

He didn't know how much more he could take, didn't know what to do if something else would go wrong.

"Madara, enough of this!"

"I'm done listening to your kind!" He charged forward. "You'll be the first SOLDIER to die by my hands!"

The Buster sword blocked Madara's weapon as the two glared at each other, not wanting to give in.

"I will make sure you will all suffer…"

"You leave me no choice." Sasuke jumped back, causing Madara to stumble forward a bit. He then looked at what the spiky haired SOLDIER was planning, seeing the boy holding onto a Summon Materia.

Bahamut came fort as it growled, letting his summoner jump onto his back before taking off into the air and delivering a powerful attack towards Madara.

Sasuke jumped off of the creature after it took him back above the battleground, wondering if Hinata was alright.

"Don't think that killed me!"

He quickly turned around and blocked an attack from Madara, but failed to apply enough strength to hold his ground, and that caused him to fly backwards. His weapon flew off from his hands as he landed on the metal ground, grunting in pain when he hit the stairs, face first.

"_Shit."_ He felt blood trickle from the corner of his lips, not liking the metallic taste of the crimson liquid.

Madara turned his back to the fallen SOLDIER and walked to the creature he called mother.

His sinister gaze turned to that of a gentle one as he reached out a hand, failing to notice how an Infantryman had sneaked up from behind him and picked up the fallen Buster sword.

Without any hesitation, he charged at Madara, piercing the former SOLDIER's mid section from behind, the pointed end of the sword hitting the glass capsule which contained GENOVA, causing the tube to crack.

Madara slowly looked over his shoulder to gaze into glaring blue eyes, before he fell to the ground, weakened from the wound.

The Infantryman then pulled out the sword and ran back outside to check on Hinata.

He lifted her up into his arms and had a concerned expression on his face. He pushed away some strands of her hair, caressing her cheek, hoping she'd wake up.

The sound of footsteps made him turn from Hinata to Madara who emerged from the other room, clutching onto his wound while holding his sword and having GENOVA's head in-between his side and arm. He sent a glare towards the blonde-haired Infantryman.

"How dare you…" he seethed.

"N-Naruto..!"

He was startled to hear Sasuke's voice, so he looked at the dark-haired SOLDIER who was near Madara, seeing how he struggled to at least push himself up.

"Finish him off!"

He didn't think that Sasuke would say that, since the guy refused to kill, much less fight against a comrade - former or not.

"That's an order Naruto!"

But given the circumstances, he couldn't blame Sasuke for coming up with such a decision, and he was only an Infantryman told to obey the commands of his superior.

With a nod, Naruto set Hinata down gently and picked up the Buster sword lying on his side. He stood and directed a glare to Madara before charging at the used-to-be hero. The guy destroyed his hometown, Nibelheim. He hurt the people, he hurt Hinata.

"MADARA!" He cried out and ran towards the ex-SOLDIER before jumping high into the air and bringing down the large sword.

Madara had no difficulty in blocking the attack despite his wound, but he was surprised that a mere Infantryman can possess this much strength to actually make him shake due to the force.

Gritting his teeth, he sent Naruto inside the room he came from, knowing for sure that Sasuke's too weak right now to even stand up.

Naruto grunted as he rolled to the ground, dropping the sword at the process while Madara came walking in, intent to kill the blonde.

He sent his nodachi through Naruto's chest, only it was towards the right and not the left where the boy's heart was currently beating.

"You..!" he snarled, raising his sword to bring the boy's body up in the air. "Don't test me!"

Naruto slowly lifted his head up, trying to ignore the searing pain on his right chest as he glared at Madara and grabbed the blade with his gloved hands. He gripped onto the metal object tightly, causing Madara to scowl as he tried to pull it out of the boy's body, finding that he was unable to due to the Infantryman's strong grip.

"No..! That's impossible!" He cried.

The blonde-haired boy gave out a yell as Madara hadn't realized that he had lowered the boy to the ground, and was now the one being lifted into the air.

"You son of a bitch!" Naruto threw him off to the left, the blade sliding off of his body since Madara still held onto the handle.

The older man's back had hit a large computer, causing electricity to spark and the object to erupt into fire.

He heard Madara give out a painful cry before falling into the dark abyss below, hoping that he was gone for good.

With a deep inhale of air, he walked out of the place, staggering, his eyes lingering on Sasuke's form on the floor, the SOLDIER trying to get up. He made a move to help his superior, but he, instead, came crashing forward, falling to the ground with a loud _thud_, his body sliding down the stairs, stopping just a few inches away from Sasuke who had looked up upon hearing the sound.

"Heh…" He gave a weak smirk. "Naruto…" He tried to get back up but couldn't, feeling fatigue taking over him. "You… did it…" and he fell unconscious.

* * *

Something was wrong, he could feel it, _sense _it.

His eyes slowly opened, only allowing him to see blurred images of his surroundings. He saw a person, male judging from the flat chest, clothed in a lab coat. His eyes glanced to where the man had walked towards, seeing a couple of Infantryman carrying a stretcher – a stretcher where Naruto lay.

"This one here…" The scientist spoke, and he swore he had heard that voice somewhere. "Intrigiuing…"

He opened his mouth, attempting to speak, but couldn't form the right words.

"Most intriguing! He'll make a fine test subject!"

And once more, he slipped into the darkness.

* * *

"You call yourself SOLDIER?"

"_That voice…" _his vision was dark, and white celestial feathers floated around him. _"…Aniki?"_

"You tarnish the SOLDIER name."

His eyesight cleared, and his eyes widened when he saw Itachi standing there, holding onto the Buster sword.

"Aniki..?" He was about to run after Itachi when he turned his back to him. "Aniki!" He yelled. He was about to reach out, but glass prevented him, and he realized that he was in a laboratory, inside a hydro capsule, and that Itachi was flying away. "Itachi! Wait!" He hit the glass, punched it repeatedly, and bubbles began to rise and form, blocking his vision due to his thrashing about.

He found himself standing on shallow water, and then looked up at the blinding clear blue sky, and he flinched, before seeing a single white feather flow down freely, and his gaze followed it, until it landed on the surface of the water, making a light ripple.

Sasuke raised his head to the sky with a look of longing. "Those wings…" he said softly. "I want them too…" and the cracking of glass was heard.

* * *

A man entered the laboratory, whistling innocently as he set foot inside the room, stopping when he spotted one of the test subjects crumpled into a heap on the floor.

He saw how the capsule that contained him had broken, causing water and glass shards to mess up the floor.

Slowly, he approached the SOLDIER, attempting to see if he was still alive, only to step back when the raven-haired boy had stood up, staggering, before looking at him and throwing him a hard punch, an attack that had knocked him out upon impact.

Without saying anything, he shook his head a bit to get rid the blurry vision, afterwards, steadied himself on his feet before approaching the other capsule which held the blonde-haired Infantryman.

He checked the glass for any switch that would drain the water and open the capsule, and when he found one, he pushed it and soon caught Naruto into his arms, checking for a pulse, seeing if he was in need of immediate medical attention.

When he was satisfied that Naruto would be alright, he set him down first and looked for his weapon, seeing it leaning against a wall, the keychain of Sakura still hanging from the end of the handle. He gave a small smile and took it, afterwards, strapped it to his back and walked back to the fallen scientist, searching for something that may help them.

He found a key, and, thinking it may be of use to him, he took it and went searched the room for anything of valuable assistance.

In doing so, he managed to find money worth ten thousand gil. He figured they might need it, seeing as how his wallet and other belongings were missing.

Thankfully, though, his phone was still there, but when he picked it up from the table, he cursed when there was no signal.

"Fuck." He shoved the item into his pocket and glanced at Naruto, seeing how dazed he look despite being conscious. "We're gonna get out of here." He told him, walking over to the Infantryman and helping him up. "I swear we'll get out of here."

Slowly, but surely, they got out of the lab, and he recognized it as being part of Shinra manor.

When they made it to the tunnel area, he set Naruto down. "I'll just clear the way for us," He murmured. "It'll be hard to deal with monsters when I'm carrying you." He ruffled the boy's hair in assurance before going on ahead, eliminating the creatures that dared to block his path without so much as breaking a sweat.

By the time he was done, he deemed the place safe, and he rushed back to get Naruto.

"Time to get going again." He told the younger boy before helping him up once more.

They got to the second floor of the mansion, finally out of the underground passage, and he set Naruto on the bed in one of the rooms he found.

"Didn't think you were this heavy." He muttered, taking a breather. "Wait here a minute, I'll check if the place is safe."

And he walked out of the room and out of the mansion in order to rid the path of monsters.

By the time he went out of the room and checked every door, he spotted a dresser and checked the keyhole. He wondered if the key he got from the scientist would fit there, so he tried it and managed to unlock the closet. He spotted a couple more money, and he had to smirk at his luck so far, before turning to the SOLDIER uniform located at the left side of the furniture.

"Hn." He recalled Naruto's dazed look, his far-off expression and lack of response. _"Ch. Symptoms of Mako poisonng."_ He shook his head at the idea and grabbed the clothing. _"Naruto has been exposed to Mako too much, he could die if I don't get him out of those clothes fast."_ He paused in his thoughts and twitched. _"As wrong as that just sounded…"_ And he ran back to where Naruto was.

He looked outside the window, seeing a few monsters lingering the area, and he figured her should get to town first before thinking about changing Naruto's clothes.

"We better move." He told the unresponsive blonde, and soon, supported him in walking once more.

The moment they arrived into town, he was stunned upon seeing Nibelheim looking normal.

"_Impossible!"_ He gritted his teeth. _"I saw this town burning! I saw it reduced to ashes!"_ His eyes scanned the area, the place deserted, and he checked the time in his phone, noting that it was still dawn, which probably explained why the townspeople were still indoors. _"Still…"_ He looked up at the sound of thundering footsteps, and he cursed when a troop of Infantrymen had arrived at the scene, the lead shouting an order to attack them.

"It's a breakout! The professor's test samples are escaping!"

"Ch." These men didn't recognize him as SOLDIER, in fact…

"_Why do they act like we're traitors?"_ He cursed. "If you think your average grunt can take me on, you've got another thing coming!" He drew his sword, ready to fight, before turning his head sharply to the left when another group had appeared. He scanned the area, cursing at how his luck had ran out, and he was surprised when a couple more arrived from behind him where Naruto was.

"Shit! Naruto!" He yelled, trying to call the boy's attention as an Infantryman had begun to drag him towards the exit.

Gunshots fired, and he cursed and turned back to the men.

"_This is bad, I need to stop them, I can't let them catch us again!" _And without another moment's pause, he charged.

When he was done with one set, he moved to tackle the one taking Naruto, but that Infantryman got up and ran off, just in time as reinforcements came. Sasuke attacked, taking note that another Infantryman had arrived to continue dragging Naruto. He finished quickly, the process repeating again and again, until he was sure no one would arrive to capture them.

He scared off the guy who was dragging Naruto, telling to keep running and that he better not come back.

Once out of sight, Sasuke placed a hand on his forehead when he felt dizzy, and he caught himself before he could fall to the ground.

"Ugh… what's wrong with me today..?" He grunted, falling to one knee as he tried to keep himself in balance. "This can't be right… how could I be having trouble with these guys?"He shook his head a bit, forcing back his fatigue. He stood back up and looked at Naruto, inspecting his situation before shaking his head. _"Looks like it's better to stay at the mansion after all."_

"_We should stay there until dark…" _He marched to the mansion, carrying Naruto and looking up at the sky. _"Yeah, we should just rest and try to regain our strength."_

They reached one of the rooms, and set Naruto down on the bed, brows furrowing when Naruto grunted but did not speak.

"_No, this isn't poisoning…"_ He frowned. "Ch. Mako Addiction." He took a step back and stumbled to the ground, lying on his back on the floor as he stared at the ceiling, almost looking daze. "Itachi… am I… not capable of saving someone… anyone?"

He lay there, closing his eyes, letting his thoughts drift to his hometown, his status as a SOLDIER, his friends back in Midgar… Sakura…

He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling, before sitting up and looking at Naruto.

"First things first, you'll need a change of clothes…" He said. "That mako-soaked uniform won't help you recover."

He took out the folded set of SOLDIER uniform he had in a backpack he took from one of the rooms in the mansion.

"It doesn't really smell good but, it'll have to do." He tried to ignore the idea of how wrong it seemed to undress a guy, much less change his clothes, and he could only pray that Naruto wasn't aware of this, or it might as well scar their lives forever. _"Can't believe I'm doing this…"_ He sighed and was more than glad that he was done, Naruto now dressed up in SOLDIER uniform, looking like a 1st class SOLDIER at that.

"Heh." He smirked. "Looks pretty good on you." He stretched his arms a bit and checked the time. "Hn. Still not close to night time." He turned his back to Naruto and moved to pull his phone out of his pocket, only he felt something else in it, so he pulled out the object, seeing a paper folded twice, wrinkles evident on it. It was soaked with mako as well, but given the time he had been out of the capsule had dried it off.

"Wait a minute…" He stared at the paper, suddenly recalling one of the important moments in his life that the single piece of paper had brought him.

_They're tiny, but you have lots right?_

_That's right!_

Sakura…

_Wanna hear?_

_Heh. How many you got?_

_Hmm…_

She counted then, he remembered how she was being playful at that time.

_Twenty… three?_

_Write them down, so I don't forget._

He slowly opened the note, remembering that he hasn't read them, hasn't seen her wishes, and his eyes widened when there was one simple sentence there that made his heart beat faster.

_I have twenty-three tiny wishes. But you probably won't remember them all, so I put them all together into one: __**I'd like to spend more time with you**__._

His eyes half-closed at that, re-reading the note over and over, before folding it neatly, careful not to rip it, tear it. He pocketed it in his pants and glanced at his companion.

"Hey, Naruto." He looked up at the ceiling, as if picturing the sky there. "I… I have to go to Midgar."He turned to face him and bent down slightly, before giving a small smile. "Hn. You want to come with me?"

Of course, Naruto didn't respond, but Sasuke wouldn't leave him there, and besides, the former 1st class SOLDIER already decided that his silence was a yes.

* * *

They reached Nibelheim, him feeling much better, but Naruto still a bit weak, though he was making progress when he would grunt at times, or even walk better than earlier.

Sasuke set him down first when three Infantrymen came charging upon seeing them, and he attacked them, not wasting even a second in defeating them.

If they wanted to get out, they needed to move fast.

"_This time,"_ he thought as he finished off the last Infantryman. _"There is no option for mistakes."_

Once done, he picked Naruto up and turned to him. "We're getting out of here."

He managed to get far by reaching an open field, deserted of people, no Shinra personel or Infantryman around, but he did see a couple of Bullheads, machines that were like SHINRA operatives. They were the same ones that had tried to attack him and Sakura back then, when he figured that Itachi may have been alive.

He set Naruto down on a safe area, making sure that a few trees and bushes hid him, and soon, he stealthily made his way to the Bullheads, seeing an abandoned sniper rifle lying on the ground with a couple of rounds left for reloading.

"_Not exactly my style but it will have to do."_ He took it and ducked to the ground, viewing through the scope with one eye and aiming for the head of the machine. He pulled the trigger, getting a perfect hit and destroying the Bullhead with one shot. He checked the area, seeing a few more up ahead, and he figured that he'd have to take them all out with just one shot, or else he'll run out of bullets, and it'll be harder to escape if they were spotted by these things.

"_Time for more sniping."_ And he positioned himself and started destroying them one by one.

By the time he had finished, he had reached a lighthouse, quite near the shore and slightly far from where he had put Naruto.

"Phew…" He took in the scent of the saltwater air, breathing in and out, trying to calm himself down. _"Thirty-one."_ He had counted. _"Thirty-one Bullheads…"_

He sighed heavily and eyed the horizon, letting the sound of the waves rid his stress.

"Where do I go from here..?" He murmured to himself. "I can't do much when I've got Naruto to worry about," he furrowed his brows and shut his eyes. "Aniki… what should I do?"

Soft footsteps reached his ears, and he figured that the person must have been trying to remain quiet, and he couldn't but smirk, knowing full well who it was.

"Tenten," he said the name with familiarity. "Been a while."

The bun-haired Turk stopped her approach and eyed her friend.

"Sasuke…" She said his name in return. "The fugitive sample, is it you?"

She didn't want to hear the answer, but she needed to make sure.

"It would appear so."

His voice, she noted, sounded tired and strained; he must have been saddened by the fact that he was no longer a SOLDIER, but rather, an escapee.

"What did they do to you in that place?" She asked, feeling sorry for him, at how his efforts had gone to waste.

"This and that…" He mumbled, not wanting to go into details. "Tenten," He sounded hopeful this time. "You're… here to take us back, right?" He turned to face her, and the disheartened expression on her face made his brows crease, made his hope vanish. "Please…" He had begged, something he hadn't done for so long. "Just walk away!"

She was surprised at his outburst – his usually calm demeanor long gone.

"I thought we could outrun the army!" He cried out. "But the Turks…" He mumbled, making eye contact. "The Turks are a different story!"

"Sasuke, I'm sorry." She lowered her head for a bit before taking out a large shuriken, ready to attack. "This is my job!" She exclaimed. "If you want to escape, you have to- have to…" She shut her eyes and threw the weapon, him deflecting it without having any difficulty, and she mused at how such a waste his talent and skills would be.

"Ch." He pointed the sword at her, and she eyed how her weapon fell to the sand next to her feet. She didn't make a move to pick it up, but she did step forward to approach him. "Step back!" He warned. "Next time…" He eyes were different, she noted, they were glaring this time, they were so angry, hurt and confused from the betrayal. "Next time…" his voice softened. "I'll really have to…"

The unsaid words he left hanging was understandable, she knew what he had planned on saying but couldn't say, and her head lowered at that knowledge.

Without waiting for her response, he started to run, making sure she wouldn't follow, leaving her to sigh heavily and shakily.

* * *

"Naruto…" He said in a low voice to not alert and lurkers. "The Turks are here too." He told the still unresponsive boy. "It's too dangerous to move now."

Naruto just remained stationary on the ground, eyes daze and head lowered.

"We'll rest here 'til morning," Sasuke said, gazing at the night sky. "Then we'll live at dawn." He eyed Naruto for a while, and gave a small half-hearted smirk. "We'll be alright…" The smirk vanished from his face when he heard footsteps, and he turned to glare at Tenten, seeing her cautiously approaching him and Naruto.

He drew out his sword, preparing to defend in case the girl would attack.

"Wait, he's the other sample they collected in Nibelheim."

Sasuke moved in front of Naruto, not keeping his eyes away from Tenten. "Why did you come here? I told you to go away!"

"He doesn't look well Sasuke. Is he alright?"

He turned from Tenten to Naruto. "Mako addiction. Severe case."

She turned her head to the side. "The experiments, isn't it?"

"Aa."

After giving it much thought, Tenten had decided what to do. She took her mobile out and called someone, Sasuke alarmed at what she had done.

"Hey!"

She raised a hand to him, as if to silence him, before speaking on the phone.

"Neji, I've lost the target." She said, sparing Sasuke a glance, seeing his surprised expression.

It took a few seconds before Tenten hung up and turned to her friend with a smile.

"That's how it is, so get away safely."

Sasuke watched as she walked off, before opening his mouth to call her back.

"Thank you."

She turned to him, and then grinned cheekily. "Here," she tossed him a set of keys. "It's a present."

He caught it with one hand and looked down at it.

"If you think you can trust me, then use it."

And she began to take her leave once again, Sasuke watching her departing figure before a small smile made its way to his lips.

Shinra may have betrayed him and Naruto, but he still had a few friends left that he could trust.

* * *

The sound of a motor engine echoed though the silent night as the never-ending road seemed dark and frightening.

But to a trained SOLDIER like Sasuke, this was just another way to get out of Shinra's nose and find a safe place for him and Naruto.

He had read a few messages he managed to get from Shikamaru, even one mail from Shinra, which alarmed him when he read that he and Madara are now labeled as KIA, including Naruto.

"_Is this really how little we're worth?"_ He thought angrily, trying to keep a positive mind but failing.

When he reached the middle of the road, he spotted two of Gaara's copies, the one-winged beings eyeing him before taking off and landing on the ground just meters away from him.

Sasuke had to hit the breaks and cursed, glaring at the waiting figures up ahead before he got off of the tricycle, checking at Naruto first before bringing out his sword.

"You guys again…" he walked towards them, a glare fixed on his face, before his eyes widened when he sensed another presence, yet was too slow to react in time when his back was kicked harshly from behind, sending him toppling onto the concrete road.

He placed a hand on the ground and did a front flip, twisting in mid-air to face whoever had kicked him, and he glared at Gaara's form while still kneeling on the floor with one knee.

"Gaara…"

He smirked at Sasuke, and the two clones of his had held down the young SOLDIER, preventing Sasuke from retaliating.

"Get off me!" Sasuke snarled at the copies.

He winced when one of them had held the back of his head.

"Ow! My hair! Stop pulling!" He struggled as Gaara walked forward, reciting once again a line from LOVELESS.

To be honest, Sasuke getting irritated with its repetition.

"When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end, the goddess descends from the sky," he gestured at the dark clouds above. "Wings of light-"

"Spread afar, yeah yeah, I get it!" Sasuke grunted, trying to break free. "Must you fucking recite those lines over and over again?"

Gaara didn't stopped from continuing.

"Wings of light," he repeated. "Spread afar. She guides us to bliss, her gift, everlasting."

Sasuke twitched. This guy was just getting _too annoying_.

He looked at the clone from his left, spotting what seems to be strands of his hair resting on the copy's palm.

"Th… That's my hair!"

"You were a test subject in Orochimaru's new experiment." Gaara spoke. "A modified version of Jenova's power runs through you."

"You have got to be kidding me…"

Gaara nodded at his clone who had bits of Sasuke's hair, and Sasuke gaped when the copy had swallowed the strands.

"No way… he just ate my hair..!"

The red-head ex SOLDIER proceeded to speak. "Your cells will be my gift of the goddess, the degradation will cease."

Sasuke broke free from the clones' grasps, and they didn't bother to hold him back as he glared at Gaara. "You…" He hissed. "Are twisted."

"The monster has been harvested and can be discarded."

Sasuke scowled. "You're the monster."

Gaara shrugged with his left shoulder and raised his left arm, a dumb apple on his left hand.

"Legend shall speak of sacrifice at world's end." He walked away and Sasuke moved to follow, cautious with his steps. "The wind sails over the water's surface, quietly, but surely."

And he flew off, just as Sasuke had planned on detaining him. He glared at where Gaara took off to, and soon heard the other clone follow. His head turned over his shoulder, before completely facing the remaining copy that had swallowed some of his raven locks.

"What the-?"

The copy had cried out and held his throat as he felt to his knees, his hands on the floor, and he proceeded to groan.

Sasuke scrutinized the being's reaction, before gasping when the clone had glowed green, and soon a bright mixture of yellow and orange, almost blinding him had he not shielded his eyes from the light. Once it faded, he was astonished to see the clone's wing gone, and instead, replacing it were large bat-like wings at the shade of blue, the upper end of each wing were at the shape of claws that stomped the ground and grasped the destroyed concrete.

The cloned version of Gaara held onto a schmitar as it raised its head at him, the helmet preventing him from seeing its face. It jumped to its feet, and Sasuke could see blue fin-like spines growing from its back, and it gave a loud roar.

"I just love my life…" He sighed and held his sword tighter, preparing himself for another fight.

He rushed head on, delivering a powerful slash at the creature, who growled and scratched at him twice, making him staged back to avoid a critical hit. He swung his sword once, twice, thrice, sending the monster a few feet back, keeping it from getting pass him or getting to Naruto.

It was tougher than any other monster he has encountered, and he had to use a couple of magic spells just to prevent himself from getting a close call.

Hell Firaga delivered three large fireballs at the thing, but it didn't kill it. Not even his Thundaga helped much, but he had to use different combinations of spells and attacks just to keep from getting an fatal injury.

Curaga did the trick of healing some of his wounds, but he had to move fast in order to dodge the attacks of his opponent.

He never stopped slashing as soon as he got an opening, and the continuous attack of his sword and his swift movements had thrown the monster back, further away from the defenseless Naruto. Sasuke sent another set of Hell Firaga before jumping into the air and bringing down his sword at the monster, slicing it in half to eliminate it once and for all.

He stared at its crumpled heap for a moment, watching the green glows it was emitting before turning his back on it and approaching the vehicle Tenten had given to him.

"_Itachi, what do I do..?"_ He clenched his fists. _"Tell me what I should do…"

* * *

_

The terrain felt oddly familiar, and he creased his brows in confusion when he tried to remember where he had seen this place.

He had been driving all night, right until the sun had risen, right until it reached noon, right until it was around three o'clock or perhaps, later in the afternoon.

Sasuke switched off the engine and studied the place, seeing grassless grounds and plateaus.

"_This is…"_ He stepped off of the bike. _"This is my hometown..!"_ He walked forward a bit, and just below the slope he was on lay the small town of Gongaga. _"I can't believe I'm back here after so many years…"_ He turned to Naruto and smirked lightly. "Well, I guess I should welcome you here, buddy. But you're still a bit… out of it."

He walked back to the motor and got on, afterwards, proceeded to Gongaga, keeping out of sight in case some of the Turks or operatives of Shinra were around.

He parked at a nearby dump, the place littered with various metals and car parts, even unfinished buildings surrounded them, and Sasuke figured that this would be a good temporary hiding spot.

"_Hmm…"_ He crossed his arms in thought while leaning against the bike. _"Going to my house would mean walking into an ambush… but…" _he sighed. _"I'm just worried about my mom, should I go back to town..?" _He shook his head and turned to Naruto. "Wait here for a bit, I'll… just scout the area."

He checked his phone, seeing that the signal was strong this time, so he flipped it open and attempted to contact Shikamaru, the only SOLDIER operative he could trust given this situation. The guy was threw a fit when he received the message of Sasuke being KIA, and didn't want to believe it, thus, the never-ending mails he got from the SOLDIER. Shikamaru even updated him with Sakura, saying that the flower wagon, well, one of its wheels at least, was ruined.

Sakura wanted him to fix it, not Shikamaru, and that little tidbit just fueled him to keep going.

"Behind you."

He nearly jumped had he been any other person, so instead, he quickly turned to meet Tenten's look of exasperation.

"So predictable." She mumbled. "Couldn't you guess your hometown would be the first place we'd look?"

"Hn."

"Here to see your mother?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"

"I see…" She approached him, keeping a good distance away, knowing that the guy liked his personal space to be, well, he just wanted his personal space.

He sighed heavily. "I guess… I guess you're right. It was pretty careless." He nodded once. "We'll be going." He turned to walk away once more.

"Be careful." Tenten warned. "Security is very tight right now. Apparently, another target is in the area."

Another target – it couldn't have been Naruto, because Tenten and the other Turks already knew that when Sasuke is spotted, Naruto will be there too. So it must have been someone else, someone Shinra was also after.

He had an idea, but he wanted to confirm it first.

"Who?"

Tenten crossed her arms and looked at Sasuke. "Itachi."

He stared at her for a while before nodding a few times and turning away. "I see…"

She furrowed her brows at that. "'_I see_'? He died by your hand. You're not surprised?"

Without looking at her, he answered: "I think he may have helped us escape Shinra manor."

"That's interesting…" she murmured. "So the sightings were true."

"But…" He frowned. "Why would he come to a place like Gongaga?"

Tenten quirked a brow. "He came here to see you, what other reason could there be?"

With that said, Sasuke quickly grit his teeth and scanned his surroundings.

"Itachi…" He mumbled out, clenching his fists. "Run away if you can!" He yelled out, in case his brother figure was close by. "The Turks are watching!"

"Ten minutes…" Tenten said. "I'll give you ten minutes, after that… I return to the Turks."

Sasuke looked at her. "Return..?"

"Right now," she walked around, arms still crossed. "I'm not in the mood. I can't bring bad news to your mother."

"My mom…" He turned elsewhere. "How is she?"

Tenten gave a slight laugh. "She's worried; she thinks after all this, you won't be able to find a wife."

He flushed and sighed while scratching the back of his head furiously. "What's up with that?"

She just ended up laughing even more. "She's a nice person, and she's doing fine."

"Good…" He mumbled. "That's all I need to know."

"Yeah…"

Her tone was off, and he couldn't help but ask about her parents.

"I was raised inside Shinra."

That sure felt awkward.

"Uh… I… see…" He coughed. "Do you… think you could keep her company for a while?"

She smiled a bit. "No problem."

"Heh. And since it's mom, she'll probably ask you to join the family."

Tenten walked off, her back turned to him. "Already happened."

"W-what?"

She grinned at him and gave a peace sign.

"What did you tell her?" He asked as she walked off. "Tenten!"

"Five minutes Sasuke!" She called and then ran off.

"_Knowing Tenten…" _He felt his cheeks turn slightly red. _"She must have said something about Sakura…"_

And speaking of Sakura, how long has she been waiting for him, he wonders…

"_Heh. It's really rude to keep a girl waiting."_

He watched as Tenten disappeared from sight, inwardly thanking her for being a true friend.

From the corner of his eyes, something caught his interest, and he turned to see something white, something feathery- celestial like.

"Itachi..?" He whispered the name, before confirming that it was. "Itachi! It is you!"

But he flew off all of a sudden, and Sasuke immediately sprinted after him.

"Itachi!" He called out. "Aniki..! Wait!"

No way was he going to lose one more person he valued in his place; enough is enough.

_**To be continued…

* * *

**_

_Next on Crisis Core: Chapter 7: Salvation Brought_

"Stand and fight, SOLDIER first class Sasuke!" Gaara yelled, angered at what he has done.

"Why…" Sasuke clenched his fists and met Gaara's gaze. "Why does everyone keep pushing things on me?"

He brought out his sword just as Gaara prepared to attack.

"Why do I always have to fight?"

And their sword clashes.


End file.
